The Grand Line Waterbender
by The Samurai Prince
Summary: Katara was sent to a new world by twisted fate. She doesn't know why she's there, but she now must survive the adventures of an unusual pirate crew, so that she can find her way home at the end of the Grand Line. OP/Avatar. Back on board, but updates will be scarce.
1. The Girl That Controls Water

Well, this is a first, huh? A One Piece and Avatar crossover. And darn it, it's about time! :P As you may know from the description, this fic will basically be about Katara and her adventures with the Straw Hats Pirates and so on(yes, and SO ON.) BUT…..I might put more Avatar characters in later…..you'll never know. ;)

This will be my crossover fic, so I need good feedback on this, let it be interactions, or IC-ness. Okie-dokie, time to begin! Read and review!(honestly, please do. :( )

Disclaimer: Avatar: The Last Airbender is owned by Brian, Mike and Nick. One Piece is owned by Oda-sensei. :D

Also, the 'dream' sequence was made by the ever so sweet and talented, pretty in green! Thank you so much for helping me with that part! ^_^

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**The Grand Line Waterbender**

By TPOC

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_**CRASH!**_

The giant whale tried again.

_**CRAASH!**_

And again.

_**CRAAASH!!**_

And again.

_**CRAAAAASH!!!**_

And again some more.

_**CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! CRAAAAAASSSSHHH!!!**_

An enormous whale was ramming his forehead into a mountainous rock wall that was submerged underwater. The whale had deep gash slashes on his forehead from ramming into the wall so much. One would think there was something wrong with the poor creature. But believe it or not, the whale was doing this for a purpose.

The whale's name is Laboon. And he was trying to see his human friends again.

Above water and on higher ground, there is a cascading current of water that flowed downstream on a mountain, and on the bottom of each side of land are two lighthouses. In the front of the right lighthouse of the mountain, there stood an elderly man.

He has an odd appearance. The old man has a protruding beard, a balding head with bizarre hair, which looks like he has ten tropical forest leaves circling around the top of it. He has small circled glasses on, a gold chain necklace, two wrists accessories, and a gashed scar on his upper left arm and a small stitched scar on his lower right arm. He has a look of grouchiness on his face, but it is probably just from old age, since he is 71. He was wearing a tropically colored casual shirt, shorts and sandals.

He was standing in front of the lighthouse, looking intent on the noise the whale was making.

'_Darn it Laboon, just give it a rest for the day._'

The old man's name is Crocus. He works at the lighthouse to see if any people have crossed the current.

He's also the surrogate, but now permanent owner of the whale Laboon. Try as he might though, he cannot tame Laboon from his constant pounding on the mountain wall.

That is, until that day when Laboon suddenly stopped.

"Huh?" wondered Crocus. He didn't........he wasn't.........is he?

"No.......Laboon." Crocus said, in a despaired voice.

Laboon would stop his pounding on a daily basis, but Labbon stopped too abruptly and quickly that time. He normally would at least keep pounding on for thirty minutes.

But then, Laboon emerged up.

Crocus was relieved greatly. If he had died, his entire body weight would drag him down to the ocean.

But wait. Why _did_ he stop?

Crocus' answer was what was in front of the gigantic whale.

A girl, rising up from the water, had emerged, and was floating in front of Laboon.

"What? A girl?" murmured Crocus. What was a girl doing out here? And why had she emerged from the water?

Either way, he had to bring this girl to shore and safety.

"Thanks Laboon!" he said to the whale. He replied with small whale noise.

Crocus may be an old man, but he was well fit for his age. So he jumped into the water and swam all the way to where the girl was located. He grabbed her around her waist and dragged her to the ladder that goes up to land, where he climbed up with her slung across his shoulder.

He then put the girl on the ground and quickly checked for a pulse. There was one, but it was faintly there. He then performed CPR, rapidly pushing her stomach to get water out of her lungs, and using mouth to mouth.

While Crocus was saving the girl, the girl herself was in an unconscious dream state…..

_---_

_Katara stood outside, leaning on the wall of the beach house. She looked up at the full moon and felt its energy coursing through her. She smiled to herself, knowing that tonight would be a great night for water bending._

_She sighed and slid down the wall until she was sitting comfortably on the ground. She let her head rest on her knees as she looked out towards the beach, silently thinking to herself. The cool night air provided a lot of relief from the jumbled thoughts that were marring her brain. She breathed in slowly and tried to let her stress leave her as she breathed out. She continued on like that for a while as she listened to the waves crashing against the sand and rocks in the distance. It was a calming setting, and she found it highly therapeutic. She was willing to try anything and everything to relax._

_Katara was so caught up in her reverie that she barely noticed her fire bending friend walk outside of the beach house, looking for her. She was able to feel the wood creaking underneath her and immediately looked up at Zuko who was nonchalantly standing against the wall while Katara remained on the ground. Even though she was a little confused as to why he would even consider joining her outside so late at night, she said nothing and turned her head to face forward again. Zuko broke the silence first._

_"So what are you doing out here so late?"_

_Katara shrugged. "I couldn't sleep. I have too much on my mind."_

_Zuko nodded in agreement. "Everyone's been a little on edge ever since we got back from the Ember Island Player's show. Aang's been tossing and turning a lot. I think that the stress is starting to get to him. I feel bad for the kid," he added._

_The mention of the Avatar's name made Katara shift uncomfortably. It didn't go unnoticed by Zuko as he stared down at his water bending friend with a questioning look._

_"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked._

_Katara bit her lip before she answered. "I guess things have been getting awkward between Aang and I lately." She looked at Zuko and saw that he was listening, so she decided to continue._

_"During the intermission at the play…well…Aang kissed me."_

_Zuko's eyebrows shot up, but he didn't say anything. Katara groaned. "I don't know what to do."_

_"Well," Zuko started, "what do you think about it? Why are you so worried about it?"_

_Katara shook her head and sighed. "I don't know. I mean, I'll admit: it was kind of nice. But this isn't the time to be worrying about relationships right now. I was shocked to say the least that he would even think about doing something like that. I don't know if I should be angry, happy, confused, depressed, or something else. My mind's a mess," she finished lamely._

_Zuko kneeled down and placed a hand on Katara's shoulder. "You sound like you need to calm down, alright? I'm sure that after this war blows over, you'll have plenty of time to think about Aang and where your relationship stands right now. But you shouldn't rip yourself apart over this. You have to relax, okay?"_

_Katara cracked a small smile. "I guess."_

_Zuko nodded. "Stress doesn't suit you. You shouldn't be over thinking this as much as you are. I'm sure everything will work out for you," he assured._

_Katara nodded. "I know. But, I still can't stop thinking about him. It's hard not to remember what had happened when I see him every day. But I guess you're right. There are more important things we all have to worry about and it definitely isn't this," she reasoned._

_"There we go. Just don't think about him too much. Agreed?"_

_"Agreed."_

_After a few minutes of staring out at the beach, Katara stood up and told Zuko that she would be going on a walk around the beach. She promised she wouldn't be out too late so Zuko left her be while he went back inside to get some sleep of his own. She walked along the beach, kicking the sand up with her feet. The ocean sounds were getting louder._

_Katara walked for ten minutes before she felt the need to release pent up frustration through bending. Not wanting to go near the shore line and get her nice slippers full of wet sand, Katara looked around for another body of water that they could use in order to practice. She noticed at the end of the beach a small hill that lead towards the other beach houses on Ember Island. At the base of the hill, she saw the mouth of a cave._

_Curiosity getting the best of her, Katara trudged through the dry sand towards the opening of cave. Before she stepped inside, she noticed that the cave was probably wet from being so close to the ocean. There had to be a way to bend in here. Water probably congregated in here all of the time. Sure enough, a pool of beautiful blue water was in the center of the cave. Katara smiled as she lifted her hands and began going through her bending exercises._

_Water bending was the best release Katara could think of. She concentrated on her hands on the water around her as she pushed and pulled the stream of liquid around her. As she got further in her drills, her head started to feel strange._

_She wasn't sure if it was the cave, or maybe it was the sound of the loud waves just outside, but somehow the pool of water in the middle of the cave looked a little more…stunning…as the minutes passed by. As she walked towards the water, she felt her head grow hazier. She wasn't sure why she was walking through the water at the middle of the cave, but something about it was simply hypnotizing. All her previous stress about Aang had melted away. All that mattered was getting closer to the glowing water._

_Katara was in waist-deep by now; still surprised by the water she was just bending with, she continued walking in further anyway. The closer she got to the center of the pool, the more her mind was fading in and out. It was getting hard to think and imagine coherent thoughts. But the water was so amazing!_

_As Katara walked into the water from the neck up, she couldn't remember what had happened next._

---

_She was swirling down into a whirlpool. It was taking her somewhere she couldn't see, for she was unconscious for the most part, letting the water enter her mouth, ears, nostrils and her lungs. She couldn't see that she was being led by a bright light, where a long water serpent looking creature circled the bright light. She entered it...._

---

Katara coughed up water. Lots of it.

"Ah, thank goodness!" said a foreign voice not familiar with Katara.

She sat up and held her throat, coughing a fit. What happened? Why does she suddenly have a mouthful of water? She opened her eyes….

And widen them.

'_What in the....?_'

She was looking at a vast body of ocean that seems endless. But this didn't look like the beaches of Ember Island.

In fact…..she wasn't even on a beach! This looks more like a cliff-side. To her left she can see wide mountain ranges that also seemed endless.

'_Wh.....where am I?_'

"Young lady! Are you alright?" Said a gruff voice beside her.

Katara snapped her attention to the source of the voice......and she blinked as her eyes became more widen at what she saw.

There were two things she saw that were quite peculiar. One was the odd looking old man with a very weird bright fashion sense, along with his hair that looks like a bright yellow-purple tropical jungle flower that's around his bald head. The rest of him also looks rather strange.

The second thing she saw that was strange was a GIANT black mound of......._something_ that was in the water in front of her. And on the mound, there were big gash marks on it.

Wait.

There was also round things that were on each side of the giant mound. They look like….

"……eyes?"

She then heard a very strange echoed sound coming from it.

Her eyes widen more in what looked like terror.

The man looked at her, then at the mound. He looked back at her and said "Oh, don't worry. He doesn't bite."

His words fell on deaf ears however, as she only heard 'he won't bite'.

Katara only did the most logical thing when seeing a very giant, foreign creature.

She freaked out and screamed.

The man was taken aback by this outburst. The creature made a noise that sound like he had his feelings hurt.

"W-WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THAT!?" She yelled pointing at the creature, back crawling away from them a bit.

"Hey, calm down!"

"WHO-WHO ARE _YOU_!?" She pointed at the old man.

"There's no need to panic, just calm-"

"WHAT'S GOING ON!? WHERE IS THIS PLACE!?"

"If you just let me tel-"

"WHY HAVE YOU TAKEN ME HERE!?"

"Taken? I-"

"WHERE ARE MY FRIENDS!?"

Your friends? I don-"

"_WHERE AM I_!?"

"Just plea-"

"WHERE IS THIS PLACE?! WHY-"

"WILL YOU SHUT UP FOR A SECOND, GIRL!?!?"

Katara's mouth was instantly shut at the man's more louder tone. The creature made a noise indicating that things weren't going quite well. The old man took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, muttering something like 'I'm getting too old for this'.

Katara just stood her ground. If this man tried anything, she has a body of water near her to command.

"Who are you, and w_here_ am I?" she said, calming down her composure.

He put on his glasses and looked at Katara. "This is the thanks I get? Heh, kids these days."

"I said, _where am I?_" she said in a more demanding tone.

The man muttered 'ungrateful girl' and said. "First of all, my name is Crocus. Second, you're on the Red Line. You're also in the Grand Line."

Katara just look at him like he was crazy. Red Line? Grand Line? Where was that? Is that were she is right now? She hadn't heard anything about these places before. And…..what kind of name is Crocus?

Crocus saw her expression. "I'm not lying. That's where you are."

"But.....I don't know what those are."

He raised an eyebrow. "You don't? Hmm……where are you from, girl?"

Katara looked and studied him for a second. Although VERY strange looking, he looks pretty elderly. That and he had an honest face. But as she learned from her travels, looks can be very deceiving.

Her mind drifted to Zuko and her in the Crystal Catacombs. Katara shook her head at that long forgotten memory and answered the man. "The South Pole."

Crocus raised an eyebrow. "The South Pole?" The creature on the water made a noise that would indicate he was confused.

Katara jumped at the creature's sound. "Ah! What is that thing?!"

Crocus said, was quite irritated at this girl for calling Laboon a 'thing'. "He's not a thing, he's an island whale! And he was the one who discovered you coming out of the water! His name is Laboon!"

"A-a whale?" She looked at Laboon, who moaned a whale sound. "T-that's......a whale?" she said baffled.

Whales are quite rare in the seas, especially in the South Pole, but.....they were never this HUGE. NEVER.(1.)

"Yes, he is." Crocus said.

Katara stood up and marveled at the giant water mammal. This whale could've been fifteen times bigger than Appa! This whale was……_enormous_!

Crocus cleared his throat loudly to get Katara's attention, in which he did.

"So….the South Pole?

"Um, yeah. Actually, I was with my friends over at Ember Island. I don't know how I-" She stopped as she realized something. "Wait! Did you say you and......"

Crocus blinked. "Um, Laboon."

"Right, did you say you and Laboon get me out of the water. The ocean?"

Crocus nodded. "Yes."

Katara gasped. What was she doing out in the sea, anyways? Last thing she remembered was being in a cave, bending the pool of water in it and......the water……

Katara's eyes widen once more in realization. Could the pool of water in the cave have something to do with where she is? She remembered it being so beautiful......and then she blacked out......

Katara's legs felt weak. Where _was_ she? This didn't look anywhere like Ember Island. She doesn't even know......

......If this is even her world......

Katara looked back at Crocus with an anxious look. "Where part of the world am I in?"

Crocus raised his eyebrows, but noticed her expression of her face. She seemed….lost. "You're…..on the Red Line. This is the entrance to the ocean of the Grand Line."

"Where is that!? What nation is that in?!"

Crocus looked at her, astonished. Nation? What is she talking about?

"Well? Earth? Fire? Water? AIR!? Say SOMETHING!" She was panicking now.

Crocus didn't know what to make of this. He was worried, but for the girl. Laboon looked worried also.

Katara just stared at Crocus, gazing at him like he was the one who holds all the answers.

"I….I don't know what you're talking about, young girl." Crocus said to her in a sadden tone.

That was not what Katara wanted to hear.

Time felt like it stopped for her. Here she was, on some mountain shore cliff, on some location that wasn't anywhere on her world, staring at a man that might think she's insane. That and there is huge whale staring back her.

"......No." Her legs gave out, her knees back on the floor again. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, _**NO**_!" She grabbed each side of her head, wanting to feel as if this is all a dream. She wished she could say that, but this feels too real to be a dream. The panic was real, the ocean air smelled real, the wind felt real. It was all too _real_.

And yet, she didn't know how she got here. This foreign land, this place, this…..other _world_? She doesn't **know**!

Crocus was worried. He didn't know what to do. He didn't even know who this girl was and he's already feeling sorry for her. In fact, something about his girl looked peculiar. She looked tanned, almost dark looking, and she's dressed in some sort of unique red outfit that looked a little too revealing for her age – well for him anyway. She must definitely be someplace very foreign, and although he has no idea where she might be from, he has to try to do _something_ to calm her down.

"Look, little lady, maybe you need some rest." That wasn't the correct thing to say at Katara's state.

"I'M NOT CRAZY! I HAVE TO GO BACK HOME!" She shut her eyes to prevent from crying. "Sokka, Suki, Toph, Zuko......" Her eyes opened. "Oh no, Aang! Aang needs me! The others might need me! I have to go BACK!!" Katara got up and ran towards the cliff.

"HEY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Crocus ran after her. Laboon made sound of disapproval.

'_I have to go back! I don't care how, but I have to go back!_' thought Katara frantically.

But a strong hand grabbed her arm and stopped her.

"**NO!" **she said as she struggled from Crocus' surprisingly strong one hand grip. The tears started to fall from her eyes. "Let me GO!"

"I don't know what you're doing, but it's _SUICIDE_ if you do what you are about to do!"

"I want to go back! I _need _to go back! _**Let go**_!"

Katara used her other arm to try to push him off, but Crocus quickly grabbed it. He was surprisingly strong for an old man.

"You _need _to calm down! Maybe I can help you! I'll contact someone of the islands on the Grand Line and-"

"I don't even know what that is!! Let……**GO!!"**

Katara was making weird movements her arms, which confused Crocus, as he was the one grabbing them.

Laboon made a loud whale noise, as if was trying to warn Crocus.

Then Crocus experienced something that absolutely blew his mind.

The water was lifting up! Behind Katara and in front of Crocus, water was rising up on the cliff, forming like a serpent.

Crocus loosened his grip on Katara. Bad mistake, as Katara used her arms to direct the tendril and rammed the water on him.

"Gah!" yelled Crocus, and flew back at the force of it, landing roughly and lying on his back.

Katara stop what she was doing and gasped, realizing what she done.

'_Oh my gosh!'_ thought Katara, as she put her hands to her mouth. '_What have I done?'_

"C….Crocus?" she said, remembering his name. "Crocus, are you okay?

Laboon made another noise, a sad one at that. Katara looked at Laboon, giving him a look of guilt. "I-I'm sorry, I......"

A groan.

Katara look over Crocus' direction with wide eyes. '_He's okay!'_

"Crocus!"

She went over there to check to see he was okay.

She knelt beside him "I am so, so, _**so sorry**_! I-I just, I just, I just wanted to go back home and-"

Crocus coughed and sat up. "It's fine! I'm fine!" He coughed up more water. "Right now, all I want to know is **how** in the **world** did you do that?"

Katara blinked. "My-my bending?"

"Bending?" he coughed some more. "That's what it's called? It's not a Devil Fruit ability?"

"Huh? A….Devil Fruit? What's that?" Katara said perplexed.

"A Devil Fruit is a cursed fruit that can grant any person any type of power if anyone eats it. But the downside is, is that anyone who devours it, will lose their ability to swim, making them sink like anchors."

Katara blinked. "Um…..okay…."

Crocus chuckled. "You're really not from around here, are you, Miss?" He said while getting up, along with Katara, trying to help him stand, but Crocus kindly declined against it.

"Um…..no. I guess I'm not." She said, lowering her head down.

"Heh heh! Well then, where are you from, really? Another world?" Crocus said good-naturedly with a smirk.

Katara raised her head up to look at Crocus in surprise.

"Hmm. That seems to answer my question." He grinned.

"Wait…..so, you don't think I'm crazy?"

"Well, it's not like everyday I see a strangely dressed girl rising up in the water, not knowing what the Grand Line is, and talking about nations of fire, water, earth, and air."

Katara just stared at him in puzzlement. "Wait…..but…..."

"Don't worry about it, girl. There are stranger things in these waters, and this would probably take the cake!" He laughed.

Katara was dumbfounded. What kind of world is this? Better yet, why was she here? Did the Spirits have something to do with this? And why, of all times, was she here now, when they were about to face the Fire Lord at the coming of the comet? She doesn't know….

"Hey."

Katara snapped her attention back to Crocus.

"Don't do that again. Jumping back in these waters will do nothing. I doubt what you were doing will return you to where you came from."

The words struck her heart painfully. But at the same time......what she did _was_ pretty foolish.

"I'm sorry." She said in sadly, the tears forming again.

"Hey. Don't cry. Be strong, little girl." He said reassuringly

"I'll…..I'll try." She said, feeling a little better at the man's support of words.

Crocus smiled warmly. Laboon whined reassuringly as well.

Katara remembered about Laboon and what he did, and turned around and said "Oh, sorry, Laboon! Thank you very much! And I'm sorry I got…..well….crazy." she smiled sheepishly.

Laboon made a noise that would translate as a 'that's okay'.

Katara also turned to Crocus and gave her thanks to him for saving her. Crocus smiled and said 'you're welcome'.

"Well…..I don't know what to do now. I mean…..there's nowhere else for me to go." '_I just pray to the Spirits Aang, Zuko and the others won't be worried about me and carry out saving the world. Until I realize how I'm going to get back, there _is_ nothing for me to do....._'

Crocus had a thoughtful look on his face. "Hmm.......there are mysteries around _this_ world, so all I can say is, is to find some other mystical haven to bring you back."

Katara looked solemn. How is she gonna find some other pool full of enchanting water and go back?

Crocus saw her expression and said. "Hey, look. If you entered here, there's gotta be a way you can enter back to your world. Plan and simple."

Katara appreciate this man's optimism – and she KNOWS optimism – but right now, her optimism is being shot down at this point. She just hopes and prays that the gang won't panic and find her. They have a world to save. And right now, she's in a different one.

Crocus then said "Hey, I haven't gotten you name. What is it?"

She snapped out on what she was thinking and said, "My name is Katara."

"Katara? That's a nice name. Well, Katara, how about you stay at the lighthouse for a while?"

"Lighthouse?" She looked up to see another cliff with a slightly tall structure that looks almost modern to her. "You mean that thing?"

"Yep. I have a spare room in there if you want to have it."

"Well……okay." She said smiling a bit. "But why is it called a lighthouse?" (2.)

Crocus blinked. '_This girl's world must not be advanced._' He chuckled. "You'll have to see at night."

Katara raised an eyebrow on that statement. "Um…..alright."

Katara then followed Crocus to the latter that led to his house. Laboon whined happily seeing that the girl was going to stay for a while. Crocus smiled at this '_Well, it seems Laboon is quite happy with or new guest._'

"I'm quite curious though; what is bending?"

Katara thought about it while walking to the latter. "Well......it's kinda complicated. I'll explain it when we reach to you house." She said.

Crocus grinned, "Sounds good to me."

---

(End Chapter)

1. I don't know if whales or a hybrid of whales exist in the Avatar world. Can someone tell me?

2. Was there ever a lighthouse in Avatar?

I hope this looks good enough to read. I honestly do. I hope I got the real life situations down and have the characters (even Laboon) IC. And I hope the interactions were good, too. Heck, I hope this story was good for ya even!

And I know I might have some grammatical errors in this as well, so if someone could be a beta for this story, it would be most appreciated, along with answering those two questions. :)

Please review and give me good feedback! :D

And I have to say one more time, thanks 'pretty in green' for your help! X)


	2. An Encounter

Second chapter is here! Enjoy! :D

---

It was the almost night time at Crocus's house. The lighthouse was on - which amazed Katara immensely, seeing something so 'modern' - and Katara is sitting in the living area with a towel draped on her shoulders, while Crocus was fixing hot beverages for her and himself. After being wet and cold from the ocean water, she might need it. She asked if there was any tea, and Crocus answered there is, thus he made hot tea for her and hot coffee for him. Crocus came in with two hot mugs on a tray – which of course, the mugs look foreign to her – and gave Katara the hot tea. She thanked Crocus, and palm gripped the side of the mug and on the bottom of it, and sipped it, with the unused handle poking out of the back. Crocus slightly raised an eyebrow, but paid no heed to it, and drank his coffee.

"So," began Crocus, "where do you want to start?"

Katara looked up from her tea, and began to think. "Well, like I said; I would explain the premise of bending when we got here, but again, it's……kinda complicated."

Crocus smirked. "Hey, I got all the time in the world."

Katara smiled. "Well, alright then!" She started. "Let's see, bending is......" She paused. "….um…..bending is......well, you're born with it, and you put your spirit into it, but um.......it's......." she stopped. "Huh. Actually, I don't know how it works, really. I guess it's just…..in some way, a magic ability used by some people." Katara would naturally never say bending was magic, but that's the best description she could think of right now.

'_I just hope Sokka hasn't rubbed off on me._' She made a face to that.

"Magic, huh?" Crocus grinned while taking a sip of his coffee. "That's sounds simple enough." He chuckled.

"Well, I actually don't consider bending as 'magic', per se, I consider it something more."

Crocus nodded seriously. "But of course."

Katara smiled at Crocus' understanding. "But I do know that bending consists of manipulating four of the elements, water, earth, fire and air. You can bend these elements into your control and do anything with them. I'm, of course, a waterbender."

Crocus nodded. "I see. So you can manipulate water then, huh?"

"Yes, I can. I can use them as whips, slice things with them and freeze things with water. I also can heal people with water!"

Crocus grinned. "It sounds like you can do a lot! You must be a prodigy!" He took another sip of his coffee

Katara blushed and looked away. "Well......I'm really just a fast learner. I wouldn't say _prodigy_.…." She looked back and continued what she was saying. "But anyways, waterbenders can not also bend water, but different types of......liquid." She stopped, remembering bloodbending, and lowering her head a bit, having a grave look on her face.

Crocus noticed this and asked "Are you okay?"

Katara shook her head. "Oh, um yeah. I just.......remembered something, that's all."

Crocus decided to just leave it at that. He took another sip of his coffee.

"So, you can heal people? Does that make you a doctor as well?"

Katara looked backed at Crocus. "Well, I'm not really a doctor, per se, but, like I said, I can heal people with only water."

Crocus nodded. "I see. I'm asking, because I'm sort of a doctor myself. Actually, I used to be a physician. I worked in a clinic on the cape years ago. I also worked on a ship for a good while."

"Really? Wow…." She then thought of what he said. "Wait, you 'used' to be? What…..um, happened?" Katara said, making sure she's not sounding like she's prying into Crocus' business.

"Oh, nothing happened......" He turned solemn. "Do you want to know about Laboon?"

Katara blinked. "Um.....sure. What about Laboon?"

Crocus took a deep breath before starting. "Before I start though, do you know of pirates?"

"Um, actually, yes, I do." She said, remembering the pirates that Zuko…..she shook her head again. She has to stop remembering the bad times about Zuko.

"Well, have you ever heard of friendly pirates?"

Katara blinked some more. '_Huh? Where is he going with this?_' "Um…..no, not really. To me, pirates are just mindless, thieving, money grabbing crooks who attack people at sea."

Crocus gave out a whole hearty laugh. "That's one way of putting it!" He grinned. "But believe it or not.....there are good pirates on these waters."

"Wait a second." Interrupt Katara. "There are......._pirates_ out here in this world? And they're…._nice _ones? I don't believe it." Katara said, crossing her arms in skepticism.

Crocus chuckled. "Well, believe what you want to believe, but I met some myself."

"You have?"

He nodded. "You see, Laboon.......was not really my 'pet' to begin with. He actually belonged to a friendly bunch of pirates that came down that current you saw."

Katara looked confused, but she remembered the down sea current on the mountain she saw when she woke up and came over here to the house. "Oh yeah! What was that?"

"Well, like I said before, we're on the Red Line; a mountainous belt of land that divides the four oceans."

"_Four oceans_!?" Katara said, in amazement.

"Yep." Crocus smirked. "And that mountain with the down current is called the Reverse Mountain. There are different seas around this world, but right now, you've entered the most popular one, the Grand Line. I would go into it more, but I'm getting off track. Perhaps another time. This is about Laboon." He closed his eyes in thought. "Like I said, he belonged to a bunch of friendly pirates. I met them fifty years ago, on this cape here."

Katara's mouth slightly opened in astonishment. "Fifty _years_ ago?"

Crocus smiled and nodded. "These pirates and their ship came down the current, and with them, trailing along, was Laboon, who was just a little whale baby at that time. Normally, island whales travel with their kind in pods. But.....for Laboon, those pirates were his kind."

Katara was getting very interested in this story now. '_Wow. Fifty years ago, Laboon came down to this current to travel with.....pirates?_' She still can't believe pirates could be nice, but.....hey, this _is_ a different world.

"Their ship was damaged, so they stayed at the twin capes for several months, and I got to be good friends with them." He opened his eyes and his expression changed to a more solemn look. "Then, on that day the left, the captain asked me if I'd take good care of Laboon for him a couple of years, while they sail through the Grand Line.

"He said to me and Laboon, 'We're going to circum-navigate the world and return here, so stay put!'. Laboon understood."

All was quiet. Croucus had a grim look on his face. Katara didn't like that. It could only mean one thing.

Katara bravely spoke. "They.....didn't come back, did they?" It definitely wasn't a question, it was more a statement.

A pause.

Crocus nodded. "The Grand Line can be a very dangerous place, Katara. Surrounding the Grand Line are strips of ocean called the Calm Belts, where no wind goes by whatsoever."

Katara looked puzzled. "No wind? But…..that's impossible."

"Nothing is impossible in the Grand Line. And on this sea, there are weather conditions that are too unpredictable, meaning they couldn't turn around if they've tried. There are some things on this sea that makes people want to go back, and abandon their ambitions. And fifty years ago......that's what they did."

Katara had a look of realization on her face. "Wait.....so what you're saying is that....they abandoned Laboon!?" Her face was in shock.

Crocus nodded. "I have a reliable source. Those pirates…..are dead."

Katara gasped lightly and put a hand to her mouth. They left Laboon all alone wondering? Wait…..

"Does…..Laboon know?"

Crocus took a deep breath. "I told him…..but he wouldn't listen. He still thinks they are coming back." A beat. "And that's when poor Laboon's suffering began."

Katara was starting to understand where this conversation was getting at, but let him continue.

"After I told Laboon that they weren't coming back, he started wailing uncontrollably. After that had happened, he stood upright and waited for them, thinking they would return to him."

Katara was feeling really bad for Laboon. How could these so called 'friends' of Laboon just leave him like that?

"And then.....he started hurting himself."

Katara had a look of shock. "He's hurting himself!?"

Crocus nodded and continued. "He was impatient one day." He closed his eyes and said, "So he started ramming himself onto the Red Line."

Katara put a hand to her mouth and gasped lightly. Then….realization hit her.

"Wait….you-you mean….those scars…?"

Crocus nodded. "And if he keeps ramming his head onto the Red Line…..he will surely die."

Katara eyes were wide with horror. She stood up abruptly, letting the towel on her shoulders fall and said "Are you serious!? And you're just letting him do it!?"

"Of course not! I have my ways on dealing with Laboon's problem!" Crocus said in a more loud tone.

Katara was taken aback by Crocus' outburst. Crocus sighed sadly. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have shouted. I try to take good care of him as mush as I can."

"I-I'm sorry. I just....."

"Heh, don't worry about it. Although.....my method on helping Laboon is rather quite…..unique."

She blinked. "How so?"

He looked up at Katara and smiled a small smile. "I'll have to show you, because I can't explain it well just by talking about it....but I will say....that I devoted half of my life on fixing it all up on the inside of him."

Katara once again blinked. Inside of him? "Inside of him?" She repeated her thought.

Crocus chuckled solemnly, "Believe me, it's for his own good. And I'm not crossing any line of animal cruelty, either." He then gazed at the door that led outside, with a look of sadness in his eyes.

"It's the only way I can help him."

Katara saw the look in his eyes, and felt moved.

Katara didn't know what kind of project Crocus made that would have him devote half of his life to make _inside _- even if that was possible - a humongous whale…..but, she feels like she could trust Crocus on what he was doing.

Besides Aang with Appa, she never seen anyone care for an animal so compassionately, so devoted, and so sympathetically……it really moved her.

Katara was holding back tears. "E-excuse me for a moment." She said as she went to the door, exiting the house. Crocus snapped his attention back to Katara as he watched her leave the house.

Outside at night with the moon shining, Katara let the small river of tears pour down her tanned cheeks. She wiped them away with her hand.

_**Bwwwwaaaaaa.**_

She jumped and turned around to see....

....Laboon. And he was facing Reverse Mountain......_STANDING UP _from the _water_!

Katara was in awe……if Laboon looked huge before, him standing from the water made him look like a towering _GIANT. _

Laboon's eyes – or eye, since she can only see his right side – were intent on the current. It's as if he was waiting for someone......

Katara lightly gasped.

'_He's waiting for them!'_

Katara just couldn't believe it. After all those years, Laboon still thinks his friends were coming back. It broke her heart. This animal that's devoted to his owners so wonderfully and loves them so dearly was waiting for them. Even if they weren't coming back, he still would wait for them.....it truly certainly broke her heart.

She couldn't take it anymore. She had to knock some sense into Laboon somehow.

Katara spoke up. "Laboon!"

Labbon didn't move. He was still standing.

Katara tried to be strong in saying this without crying. "Laboon. Please don't be sad. I don't know much about your friends, but....." She let out shuddered sigh and looked down, knowing full well she was going to cry. "I know you miss them, Laboon, but it's not worth getting yourself killed!"

Laboon was still standing.

"I mean, you saw me before! I wanted to go home badly to see my friends also! I almost caused harm to myself! I don't want you to harm yourself either like I almost did! I just.....I know you miss them, I miss my friends too.....but you have Crocus to look after you! And if…" she choked a sob and let the tears fall again. "….And if you die, Crocus will be very sad." She choked another sob. "I'll be sad too if you died! I don't care if I just known you until now! It's just....from what I've heard….you're really suffering.... "

Laboon stood there still.

"Just....please….don't be sad….and don't die." She said, in tears now. "…..Please."

All was silent, save for the waves.

She looked up to gaze at Laboon with a sorrowful face. Laboon still stood there…..

She sighed sadly. She went back to the lighthouse, arms wrapped around her.

While she was walking, she saw that the door wasn't completely closed. She stopped…..and sighed again. She went into the house.

She closed the door behind her and saw Crocus still sitting on the couch, drinking his….what was it? Coffee? Either way, he was there.

Katara looked down. "You heard everything, didn't you?"

Crocus sat there, not looking at Katara. He then spoke.

"I appreciate what you said to Laboon. Those were kind words." He sipped the last of his coffee and placed his mug on the coffee table. "But those words will fall on deaf whale ears to him. He won't listen."

Katara looked up stunned, with her mouth slightly open.

Crocus's expression turns solemn once more. "He really believes…..that they'll come back to him."

Katara looked back down again, her expression grim.

"…..But…." Crocus spoke, his voice filled with a hopeful tone. "Maybe….just maybe….what you said will help put some sense into him. You never know." He turned his head to her and gave her a sincere smile.

Katara looked up in surprised hope. She gave a faint smile.

Crocus stood up. "Well, I think you might need some sleep after all that you've been through today. Do you want to rest for tomorrow ahead?"

Katara nodded. "That would be a good idea."

Katara then rested up in the guest bedroom, while Crocus was at the top of the lighthouse, keeping an eye on Laboon. Laboon still looked the same, standing on the water, his eyes full of hope.

But one thing that Crocus didn't noticed about Laboon, was that there were what appeared to be small tear stains underneath his eyes.

---

_She was dreaming. She dreamed about her brother, her grandma, her father, all her friends, all the good times. All those moments led to one particularly strange setting. _

_Underwater._

_She was underwater. Yet she can breathe. She opened her eyes to see the ever blue water all around her. She looked ahead and saw a water serpent-like creature coming toward her. Katara felt alarmed, preparing for anything this creature would do._

_The creature slowly halted two feet in front her, looking at her intently. Katara studied the serpent. It looked more like a dragon for the most part, with its horns, its face, and its long dragon like body._

_She jumped when the creature spoke in a male voice. "You must understand. It was for the Avatar's and the world's own good. .....I am sorry."_

_And then all she could see was light._

---

Katara woke up abruptly from her dream. She sat up quickly on her bed, having a look of confusion on her face. What was that creature? Why did the creature say all those things? And why…..was it sorry?

She sat there, wondering about this. Was the creature in her dream…..the one who brought her here?

She caught something out of the corner of her eye, so she looked to her right, seeing brand new folded clothes that Crocus prepared for her. They, along with everything around here, looked foreign. The clothes looked like smaller versions of Crocus's own attire(1); a tropical shirt – except this one was blue - and khaki colored shorts. The only clothing apparel not belonging to him was her newly dried slippers.

Katara will have to wonder later. She got dressed – although feeling really different and weird on wearing someone else's strange looking clothes – and was about to head outside, when she saw a note on the table. She over to it, picked it up and read it.

_Katara_

_I'm inside Laboon right now. And before you say anything, don't worry. I've done this a hundred times. I'm doing this to treat him. You just relax for now._

_Crocus_

She blinked at the letter in bafflement. He's actually _in_ _Laboon_? She doesn't know if she should be worried about this or not. But she decided to trust Crocus for this bizarre treatment.

She went outside, and was greeted by a beautiful day, along with the massive standing shape of Laboon. Katara looked at Laboon with sadness. She wished she can help Laboon more, but she doesn't know what else to do to make him feel better.

She went to the far edge of the mountain cape and sat at the near edge, legs crossed. She gazed at the large down stream current that's flowing down Reverse Mountain.

'_Wow! A flowing current that's going down a mountain! And to top it off, a massive gigantic animal called an island whale! Plus, all these different foreign things! This certainly is a different world! _

_And Crocus......even though he was weird looking, he's a very nice man. And he has such great devotion to Laboon.' _Katara smiled at the sweetness of it.

She may miss her home, but at least there's a good person helping her along the way.

She sat there for a while, looking at the current, Laboon, and the waves.

All was peacefully silent.......

.......until she heard panic hollering coming up the current.

Katara snapped her attention to the noise and looked up to her right. Her eyes widen.

It was a ship!

The ship looked peculiarly odd to her, but one thing that she noticed was the sail. The sail has a skull with cross bones on it. But the really odd thing about the sail was that the skull was wearing what looked like a straw hat.

She also noticed that the passengers were hollering up a storm.

Then it hit her. She looked at Laboon, then at the ship. Her eyes widened.

'_They're going to crash into Laboon!'_

The ship was going by fast. Katara can't risk waterbending this down current, it was too powerful. If she did, the consequences could be dire. Plus, they're going by so fast, she wouldn't be able to bend the water in time.

Katara stood up, not knowing what to do. She called out to Laboon, saying, "Laboon! There's a ship! There's a ship! Get out of the way!

But all hope looked like it was lost when they were about to close in on Laboon. Katara watched in horror as she looked at what she thought was going to be a tragic disaster.

But then, just when the ship was about ten feet away from Laboon…..

_**BOOM!**_

…..The cannon in front of the ship went off, striking the whale, and stopping the ship – but snapping the figurehead's…well, head - in its tracks.

Katara stood there, with her jaw dropped.

'_Did....did they just shoot Laboon?'_

Katara wasn't too informed on modern accessories on this world, but…..that sounded like a bomb going off. Except….this bomb just shot Laboon.

Speaking of Laboon, it looked like it didn't hurt him…..or so she thought. The ship stopped either way, though.

The ship then steered away from Laboon into safety. Katara snapped out of her stupor, and got a little angry at the people on the ship. Even though she was kind of glad they didn't got hurt, but…..

'_They….they shot Laboon!'_

Katara went to the other far cliff edge to where the ship was and yelled at them.

"Hey, you jerks! How dare shoot Laboon!"

The ship looked like it came to a stop, as three people - there were two people already on the deck - came to the deck and looked at her direction.

Katara could barely identify who they were, but she made them out pretty well.

One was a young woman with orange hair – she has to get used to these strange hair colors - with light blue shirt and a bright blue skirt. She also has a strange tattoo on her arm. The others with her are four young men.

The first one is a strangely long nosed man with black, somewhat curly hair, and with a bandana wrapped around the top on his head along with some goggles, and sporting some brown overalls and brown shoes. He also has a sash around his waist and a blue and white striped arm and wrist accessory.

The second one is a blonde man with part of his hair covering his left eye. He's wearing a weird black suit with a nice blue shirt under it along with a tie. He also is wearing black pants and black shoes. One other thing Katara notices is that a white stick is poking out of his mouth.

The third man has short green hair – of all colors! – with three earrings attached to his left ear. He has a white shirt, a dark green bandana on his arm, a green like sash, and really dark green pants. At the right side of his waist holds three swords.

The last guy has raven black hair, sporting a straw hat. He has a red buttoned shirt, blue denim shorts, complete with sandals. He also has a tiny left scar under his eye.

The guy with green hair narrowed his eyes at Katara and yelled, "Who are you!?"

"AND WHAT IS YOUR NAME!?" the blonde man said, swooning while his eye turn into a visible heart.

Katara blinked at the blonde man's sudden questioned outburst. "Um….Katara!" she said.

"Katara! Such an exotic name for a beautiful lady!"

Katara blushed dumbly. _'Um.....am I being hit on?'_

"NOT NOW, SANJI!" shouted the long nosed guy.

Then.....

_**BWWWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!**_

Laboon made a fierce noise.

"OOOOWWWWW! MY EARS!" yelled the orange haired girl.

"DUAAAAAAUGHHH!!!!" said the long nosed boy in humorous agony.

The green haired and the blonde haired – whose name was probably Sanji - men also tried to cover their ears.

Katara, caught by surprise, felt a tremor from the force of Laboon's cry and began to lose her footing. The noise was also unbearable to her as well, but as she tried to cover her ears, her foot slipped on the edge and she began to fall off the cliff.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!"

She kept falling......until an arm reached out and grabbed her waist.

'_Huh!?'_

Then the arm pulled its way to the ship.

"WOOAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!"

The arm retracted fast, and she sped up to the ship and was stopped abruptly, to see that she was being held by the boy in the straw hat.

She looked at him in astonishment with wide eyes. _'What....was _that_?'_

He let Katara down. He had a serious look on his face. Katara kept her distance away from him. He looked a little scary with his face looking so determined. He's intent on something, but Katara doesn't know what.

"HEY! YOU!" He shouted – which sounded strangely childish for his age - at the Laboon. "YOU BROKE MY SPECIAL SEAT! WHY DID YOU DO THAT!?"

Katara blinked. _What_? His special _seat_?

"GUM GUM….PISTOL!"

Katara then witness something that would render herself speechless.

The boy in the straw hat threw his arm back, and stretched – STRETCHED – his arm a good distance towards Laboon's right eye, punching it.

Katara stood there…..but soon slid down to the floor with her legs on the deck floor, with her jaw truly dropping this time.

Two things that rendered her speechless.

One. HIS ARM FREAKING STRETCHED!

Two. He hit Laboon in the eye, probably only angering him even more. She's speechless of this because it was a completely STUPID thing he did!

The rest spoke her mind.

"YOU IDIOT!"

Laboon's right eye – not even injured in the slightest – looked down on the ship.

The crew stood there ground.

"COME ON, DARN YOU! LET'S FIGHT!" The straw hat man said.

"SHUT UP, YOU MORON!" the green haired man and the long nosed man said.

Katara just looked at him incredulously. The straw hat guy was _insane_!

Katara looked backed at Laboon. She didn't know if Laboon was the violent type, but she figured she had to calm him down.

"L-Laboon? It's okay. It's…..it's okay." She said, trying her best to keep the situation under control. She was kind of good at that. Key word, 'kind of'.

"You know that whale?" said the girl with the orange hair.

She turned her head to the girl. "Yeah, kind of-"

_**BWWWWWWAAAAAAAAA!!!**_

Laboon then lowered into the water and started to open his mouth.

Katara gasped sharply. He….he wasn't going to do that…_is he?_

Laboon opened his mouth and began letting all the water flow in it at a fast pace.

"NO! LABOON!" screamed Katara.

The ship was being sucked in fast. The coming speed made the straw hat boy lose his footing and balance and was thrown off the ship.

"LUFFY!" the crew said to the boy.

The ship was riding through, leaving the straw hat boy behind. The water was creating waves while they kept riding in the mouth. They were about to enter the throat.

All Katara could think at that moment was.

'_Is this the end?'_

She looked on with horror in her eyes.

---

EDIT: Apparently, I fix the whole ocean bit. Thanks to those who pointed this out! :)

1. Don't ask how someone as wide and built as Crocus have a pair of small clothes. D8

Bum bum buuummm! Will they survive!? Oh, of course they will, don't worry! XD

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Review! :D


	3. Kind Words

Thanks for the reviews everyone! :D And now chapter 3……which I hope isn't that boring. Xo

* * *

The speed right now was making Luffy lose his balance. He tried to regain his footing, even hold on to something, but it proved futile, as he was forced thrown out of the ship.

"LUFFY!" his crew yelled.

"WHOOOOOAAAAAHHH!!!!" Luffy hollered out.

Luffy was about to hit water, when he quickly stretched his arm to one of the whale's giant tooth and flung himself on the side of Laboon, climbing on top of the humongous whale.

"**I'M NOT GONNA DIE**!" Luffy said with such determinate force.

Laboon slowly closed his mouth. Luffy sat there panting, avoiding a close call. But soon, with horror realization, he remembered that his friends were inside the whale.

"Oh no! My nakama!" Luffy said, the reality sinking in. "What do I do?! They all got swallowed up!"

He was in panic for his friends and crew, and began beating down the top of the whale's head.

"HEY! LET THEM OUT! LET THEM OUT, YOU STUPID WHALE! CAN YOU HEAR ME!? GET THEM OUT OF THERE!"

Luffy's pounding proved pointless for the giant whale. He soon started to panic more once the whale was sinking into the water.

"OH NO! HEY WHALE! STOP! DON'T DIVE IN! GIVE ME BACK MY NAKAMA!"

The whale didn't listen as he still kept sinking. Luffy was downright getting upset. "STOP NOW! MY FRIEND AND I ARE GOING ON AN ADVENTURE! I CAN'T GO ON WITHOUT THEM! I NEED THEM! **STOP IT NOW!!**"

But it proved futile to the whale, as the whale's top was quickly being submerged in the water. Luffy was beginning to lose hope, thinking he'll never see his friends again, while the waters were closing in on him.

But that was until Luffy spotted something on Laboon's head over to his right.

"Huh?" questioned Luffy.

On the whale's head…..was a trap door.

* * *

Darkness.

She thought she was dead. She thought it was all over.

Being inside a giant whale would lead you to believe that. But she truly, honestly thought that the darkness inside the whale would be her final resting place. The only thing that made it more grimly optimistic about all of this was the fact that she wasn't going to die alone. These people on this ship that she landed on made it all the more comforting, even though she doesn't know them at all, and she surely did _not_ want to die alone. Call her being selfish, but…..what else can she think? She was going to die. Eaten by whale….which was Laboon, no doubt.

Darkness…..is what she saw.

…….Until light came into her vision again.

Katara eyes widened.

'_Am.....am I dead?'_

What she saw, with all the other passengers on the ship…...

……was a bright blue sky with clouds.

"Wha……what?" said a confused Katara.

Was she in the Spirit World? Or was she now a wandering spirit out in the world?

She heard a voice behind her. "What in the…?"

Katara turned around to see the orange haired girl, who was carrying a perplexed look on her face.

Wait…..then….does that mean she's still alive!?

Katara stood up, taking in everything around her. She expected to be in a stomach, but it looks like she's back outside again.

"Hey! Guys, look at this!" said the long nosed guy who was at the front deck of the ship.

The rest of the crew went over there to witness what he saw. Katara was in a little stupor at all that was around her now. She reviewed on what has happened so far.

She was on a ship with four people. Right now, one of them was off the ship, and is supposedly into the water, or could be with them…..here? This was the last that really baffled her. She doesn't know were in the world she was, but she pretty much thought that she, along with these people, got swallowed by Laboon.

'_Even though that jerk hurt Laboon....I do hope he's okay. He did save my life.' _Katara thought, thinking about the Straw Hat guy. She heard them called out his name she thought, but….she couldn't remember right now.

She slowly made her way to the front part of the ship, studying the structure of it as she walked past. It was a uniquely designed ship to say at least, along with three sets of trees that has tangerines hanging from the branches, placed on top of the quarters in the middle of the ship.

She saw the four of them standing in front of the front rails of the ship and walked cautiously towards them.

The orange haired girl was the first one to speak. "Sooo….what do you guys make of this?"

Katara went over to the green haired guy and timidly tapped on his shoulder. The green haired man looked over his left shoulder and gave the girl a scowl in question. Katara took a step back in uncertainty, as she was hesitant to actually say anything because of the man's look.

Then the man spoke. "Yeah? Is there something you want to say?"

The three looked behind were they were standing, wondering who the man was talking too.

The eye that belonged to the man who was named Sanji turned into a heart again, along with a wide grin. "Katara! Are you alright!?"

Katara took a step back again and blinked. What was _this_ guy's deal? He's acting like a weirdo.

"Sanji, don't try to scare her!" The orange haired girl said irritably, knocking him upside the head. Katara blinked at this.

"Yes, Nami-swan!" He said with a bump on his head, now swooning over the orange haired girl named….Namiswan, was it? And either this guy had ADD or he constantly likes to flirts with girls. She blushed at the thought of this Sanji person flirting with her. She shook that thought away.

The girl sighed, and said "Ignore him. He's just being a love-struck idiot."

"O-okay….." Katara felt uneasy with all the stares on her. She said in a shy tone, "W-Where are we?"

"That's what we like to know." The green haired man said, looking at her suspiciously. She didn't like the way he looked at her, and was feeling more uneasy.

"Hey, um, Katara, right?" said the long nosed guy. "Do you know where we might possibly be?"

"Idiot, you just basically said the same thing she said." said Sanji.

"Hey! I'm just curious to see if she might know anything else!" the long nose guy yelled.

Well, say it differently next time! You're insulting her intelligence."

"What!? I was not! _Your_ intelligence needed to be checked!

"What did you say!?"

"Ugh! Guys, just let me tell her, okay?" said the orange haired girl.

"Hey! I was the one asking!"

"Well, I'm asking her now!" the girl said.

"What!? That's not fair! I asked her first!"

"Shut up and let Nami ask her, jerk!" Sanji yelled.

"OH, YOU SHUT YOURSELF UP, SANJI!"

"SAY THAT TO MY FACE-"

_**BONK!**_

_**BONK!**_

"Now…._I'll_ do the talking….clear?"

Sanji, and the long nose guy, whose name was Usopp, were all on the ground with bumps on their heads.

"Yeeess, Nami-swaaaan…." Sanji said in a somewhat love stricken and painful daze.

"Owww…..but I asked first…" Usopp said, in pain mostly.

The girl ignored him, and walked towards Katara, who felt very anxious at this point after seeing this woman's display of power.

"Okay, let's just skip to the pleasantries." The girl pointed to herself. "I'm Nami," she pointed at the green haired man, "he's Zoro," and then at the two men on the ground in pain. "and those two are Sanji and Ussop."

Katara nodded slowly.

"And you're name is Katara, right?"

Katara nodded again.

"Okay then. Now, could you tell where we _might possibly_ be, and mind telling us what that could be?" She pointed at what was in front of them all.

Katara looked to see what Nami was pointing at. Her eyes widen a bit at what she saw.

There, in front of the ship, was a small cottage house settled on an island, with another island that has a palm tree and a lounging lawn chair on it.

Katara blinked. _'Where.....are we?'_

She looked at the people in front of them and said. "I…..I'm sorry. I don't really know where we could be. I thought we were swallowed by Laboon."

"Is that the whale's name?" Nami said.

"Yes, it is."

While they were talking, Zoro looked over the greenish water to see that a shadowy form was emerging from the water.

'_Hm. That can't be good.'_

_**SPLOOSH!**_

What came out was a giant squid.

Katara gasped, while Nami turned around with a horrified expression on her face. Usopp screamed rather comically and ducked for cover, while Sanji and Zoro took a ready stance to fight it.

But then….

_**BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!**_

Three harpoons pierced the squid from the back, killing it instantly.

The squid tilted backwards and fell on its back with the harpoons still sticking out on the front.

Katara and Nami's eyes widened at this sudden occurrence. Usopp was on the ground with his hands on top of his head, humorously bawling. Zoro and Sanji were standing their guard.

The harpoons looked like it came from the house. The doors were opened and three harpoon lines were sticking out of it.

Zoro smirked. "Well, looks like someone's home."

"Let's hope it's a person." Sanji said, tapping his shoes on the floor, ready for action.

"Giant squids, harpoons, swallowed by a WHALE!? Going back home sounds good to me right now! And where's Luffy!?" Usopp said, sniffling.

* * *

"Huh?" questioned Luffy.

When Luffy was on top of the whale's head, he saw a trap door that lead to somewhere. Having no other options, he opened it and closed it to reveal that he was now in a lighted metal cased hallway.

"Um…..I don't know much about whales but…..since when do they have doors and lighted hallways?"

* * *

They waited on the ship. Waiting for whoever might come out of the house.

Katara was getting more and more nervous by the second. She warily prepared to stance herself just incase she had to waterbend the water at her will. Nami noticed this from the corner of her eye and wondered what she was doing.

A person's dark silhouette came into view in the house.

"AH! LOOK! SOMEONE'S OVER THERE! SHOOT THE CANNON AT IT!" shouted Usopp, completely forgetting the fact they are all on the upper deck.

"No, wait. Let's see who it is." Sanji says.

The silhouette was getting clearer and clearer by each step, and Katara was starting to recognize the person.

'_Wait....is that....?'_

The figure was in light now.

Katara gasped and eased her stance.

"Crocus!"

The crew now all turned to Katara with confused looks.

Crocus's eyes widen in surprise. "Katara? Is that you?"

"Crocus! What are you doing….um, here, wherever we are!?"

Crocus blinked.

"Wait, you know this person?" said Nami.

"Huh….he looks like a flower." Usopp said to himself.

"Yes, I know him! He-" Katara paused. '_Wait a minute....' _She remembered the note that Crocus laid on the table. She remembered the first sentence.

'_**I'm **_**inside**_** Laboon right now.**_'

'_Then.....where we are....'_

"Uh….are you okay?" said Nami.

"We're in Laboon!" Katara said suddenly. The crew was shocked.

"Huh!? You mean the whale!? Wait, we ARE inside the whale!?" Usopp said in bewilderment.

Zoro and Sanji narrowed their eyes at this sudden realization, while Nami stood in shock.

Katara rushed to the front rails and leaned over them to shout at Crocus. "Are we in Laboon, Crocus!?"

Crocus then sighed and walked to the island, with the paper in hand, and sat at the lounging chair and opened it the newspaper, reading it.

Silence.

Katara blinked. Why wasn't he saying anything?

"What's with the dramatic pause?" Zoro said to himself.

"Hey! This lady here said were we in the whale!?" shouted Sanji.

Crocus then finally spoke, rather nonchalantly. "Yes."

Katara and the rest sweat-dropped.

Katara stood there nonplussed. "Um.....Crocus?"

Crocus glanced up to see her. "Yes, Katara?"

"Is everything okay?"

A pause.

Zoro raised an eyebrow. "Again with the silence."

Crocus sat there. Then he groaned. "Ah, forget it. I was going to make this a running gag, but not with Katara here."

"A RUNNING GAG!?" The crew shouted incredulously. Katara just looked at Crocus oddly.

Crocus then said to the ship's crew. "So…..are you all pirates?"

Katara jerked in surprise and turned around to face the four.

'_These people are...._pirates!?_' _she thought.

Zoro frowned at Crocus and answered. "Yeah, we pretty much are."

Crocus just gazed at them. "Just what business do you have with Laboon? And why do you have Katara with you?"

Nami spoke "We have no business with the whale. And the girl is on our ship because our captain saved her from falling off the cliff."

Katara then said her part. "Laboon made a big groan, and I lost balance because of the vibration of it."

Crocus sat there, taking all the information in. "Hm. Are you alright then, Katara?"

Katara nodded.

"Hey, wait a minute! What are _you _doing inside the whale!?" Usopp said, pointing at Crocus

"Treating him, of course." Crocus said nonchalantly. Usopp and the rest the pirates blinked.

Katara gasped. _'So then....' _"Wait…..this is where you treat him?"

Crocus chuckled. "Well, yes and no. Right now we're in the stomach, so what you're floating in is stomach acid."

"Stomach acid!?" The crew and Katara said alarmed as they looked around the lightly green watery liquid.

"Does that mean we're being digested!?" Nami said terrified, with her hands on her face.

"Oh, don't worry. The exit is right there." Crocus said pointing at the huge doors to the far left of the ship.

"The exit!?" The crew said in bafflement. Katara looked at the giant doors in amazement. Then a thought occurred to her.

"Wait a second." The crew looked back at her. "This 'sky'," she looked up and pointed, "is not the sky at all? It's…..a mural painting?"

Crocus smiled. "It's a hobby of mine. I like to paint. I wanted to make it nice around here. It gives a good feel when I want to relax."

Katara was astonished. He did all of this? Even the giant doors? Wait….the doors! "How.......those doors….." She was speechless.

Crocus shrugged. "I had a lot of time on my hands while constructing everything inside of him."

'_Constructing!?' _Katara was dumbfounded. "But….how….?"

Crocus smiled once more. "Like I said, had a lot of free time during those years. And don't worry about Laboon. He's fine with it. I'm not a physician for nothing."

Katara stood there with wide eyes. _'Wow, that's.....mind-blowing.'_

"Wait, what's going on!? What are you treating the whale from having!?" Usopp said.

Crocus turned serious. "From being a stubborn fool."

"Eh?" Usopp blinked.

"What do you mean?" Sanji said.

Katara decided to try to explain the situation to them, until they heard a loud crash, and the entire place – a.k.a. the stomach - started shaking with all the stomach acid sloshing around,.

Everyone started to grab on to anything that will help support themselves. From all the sloshing, Nami noticed that the island underneath had metal padding under it. Nami's eyes widened. _'That must be some sort of ship.'_

"Hey, what's going on now!?" Zoro yelled.

Crocus looked up with a solemn look on his face. "It's begun."

* * *

"AAAAAH!!" Luffy yelled, ricocheting through the hallway from the sudden violent movements. He didn't know what was going. He was just walking through the hall, wondering what this hallway was doing inside a whale, until he started flying through the corridor and harshly bouncing off the ceiling and walls.

He kept bouncing around the corridor until he reached a dead end…..or so Luffy thought when he slammed his face on the wall and fell through a hole to another level. He landed in an entire different area where a river canal was flowing to who knows where.

"Huh? What's all this?" Luffy said.

But as soon Luffy was about to get up, the whole area started tilting.

"AH! Oh no! It's tilting! Don't tilt, don't tilt, don't tilt!" Luffy said while he was trying to run up the side platform, but was unsuccessful, and started sliding downwards.

"WHOOAAAAAAaaaaaaaooooo….." Luffy's voice faded as he slid into the darkness below.

* * *

'_I have to act now to stop Laboon!' _Crocus thought. He got up from his chair and dived into the stomach acid.

The crew and Katara gasped in horror. "CROCUS!" Katara screamed.

"What the heck is he doing!?" Sanji said.

"He's going to get digested alive!" Usopp yelled.

Katara looked on in horror, but then remembered the note Crocus wrote down.

'_**I've done this a **_**hundred**_** times.'**_

And that may be true. Katara felt a little more relieved, but was still worried for Crocus. She turned around and told the crew. "Don't worry, he'll be fine! He's just treating Laboon! He's done this a lot of times. And I think the reason for the movement is because Laboon, the whale, is ramming his head onto the Red Line!"

"What!? The whale is ramming his head onto the Red Line!? Why's that!?" Nami yelled from all the sloshing.

_**CRASH!**_

_**BWAAAAAAHHH!!!**_

"Nevermind that now! We gotta try and paddle our way to the doors!" Zoro also yelled.

* * *

"Alright, we made it this far undetected, Miss Wednesday. Behind this door is the stomach. The old man will probably be there on the other side. We can't let him interfere with our mission. If he gets in the way, we have to eliminate him. Our top priority is the whale. Understood?" said a man with a green suit, black shoes, orange scarf and hair, and most uniquely, a crown on his head. His appearance apparently looked more like a prince. He also has two number '9''s on each side of his face.

"Yes, Mr. 9. We need this animal's life for our village desperately." said the young woman, who was apparently named Miss Wednesday. She has aqua blue hair and is sporting a long ponytail that reaches to her waist, a light green jacket, a light purple and dark blue striped spaghetti tank top, a belt accessory, white shorts, complete with white ankle high boots.

They were leaning behind a door that was attached to more giant doors, holding what looked like to be fancy bazookas.

* * *

'_Almost there....' _Crocus swam to the latter that leads to a platform with a smaller door on the bigger doors. He reached his destination and climbed the latter.

* * *

"Alright, on the count of 3, 2, 1 baby, we kicked the door open and finish the old geezer. Be ready!" Mr. 9 said.

"Ready." said Miss Wednesday, hoisting her bazooka.

"Okay. 3. 2-"

"......aaaaaaAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!"

Caught by surprised, the two looked ahead at what was the source of the screaming, and saw straw-hat wearing person running down the tilted path.

"Wha-W-Who is that Mr. 9!?" said Miss Wednesday, nervous.

"I-I don't know, Miss Wednesday!" said Mr. 9, also nervous.

"WATCH OUT! I CAN'T STOP!"

Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday screamed.

* * *

_**KA-FLOOM!**_

The door burst opened, sending the three of them flying out of the door and screaming.

Crocus looked up to see what the commotion was and narrowed his eyes. "They're back."

Everyone on the ship turned their attention to look at the spectacle.

Zoro raised an eyebrow. "Hey, is that……Luffy?"

"It is Luffy!" said Ussop.

"He's okay!" said a relieved Nami.

"But who are those two with him?" said a curious Sanji.

Katara spotted the one who saved her from falling harshly into the ocean. _'His name is…..Luffy? Whoa, of all the strange names....' _She shook her head and announced, "They're going to land in the gastric acid!"

"Hey! You're all okay! …..Um…..can you guys help me out!?" said an uneasy Luffy as he and the two mystery people splash-landed into the acid.

Crocus was soon was up on the platform and was dashing through the opened door.

'_I've got to hurry!'__**CRAAAASSSHHH!!!**_

* * *

_**BWAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!**_

Laboon desperately rammed the underwater rock wall again and again. He didn't care what it takes; he has to see them again! He doesn't care! He has to reunite with them again! They promised him that they will come back! They promised!

_**CRAAAAASSSHHH!!!**_

Laboon kept ramming the wall, not showing signs to stop anytime soon. He was about to ram it again, when…..

'_**Please don't be sad!'**_

.....Laboon's whale eyes widened. In his whale mind, he remembered Katara's words.

'_**I don't know much about your friends, but.....' **_Laboon could image the sadden look on her face. _**'….but, it's not worth getting yourself killed!**_

'_**You saw me! I wanted to go home so badly to see my friends! I almost caused harm to myself!**_

'_**I don't want you to harm yourself either like I almost did!**_

'_**You have Crocus to look after you! And if….if you die, Crocus will be sad. **_

_**I'LL be sad too if you died!**_

Laboon heard those words. He has never seen a human girl before. And she was a pretty human girl. She has a sweet face and a sweet voice. And Laboon later knew that she has a big, sweet heart. It made him happy to see the human girl smile. Her smile glowed like the ocean at night. It made him…..forget about things. Not a lot though, he still wants to reunite with his friends…..but……

'_**Just…..please don't be sad…..and don't die…..'**_

He was going to ram the wall. He was. But…..he stopped.

He only just knew the girl yesterday. But for some reason, her beauty, her words…..her smile…..made him forget the pain.

He also didn't want Crocus to be sad as well. He'd known him for so long. And he knew he was trying to help. He was trying the best he can to make him stop. It showed him that he really has a true friend.

_**Bwwwwwaaaaahhhhh…..**_

If tears existed underwater, he would be letting them out right now.

* * *

Crocus reached the room where there's a giant shot contraption filled with tranquilizer sanative. He was going to use the machine to give Laboon a shot from the inside, but something strange happened.

Laboon stopped.

Crocus just took notice of this.

"Huh? What's this?" Crocus said, puzzled.

Laboon just straight out stopped. Crocus didn't even use the shot on him. How could this be? Laboon has been doing this for the longest time, and he just suddenly stops? What happened?

_**Bwwwwwaaaaahhhhh…..**_

Crocus eyes widened. Could it be? It was the sound Laboon would make when he would cry. Crocus was awestruck. Why was Laboon crying?

"Wait…." Could it really be? Was it possible?

Last night, while he was turning the lighthouse on, he could have sworn Laboon eyes were watery. This occurred after Katara's sincere words. Could Laboon last night have been crying over her words? And could right now, would he be crying…..just by remembering them?

_**Bwwwaaaaaaaaahhhhh…..**_

Crocus's face was solemn. He went over to a wall and put his hand on it.

He yelled out, "Laboon! I don't know if you can hear me…." He was silent, and spoke in a reassuring tone. "….but…..it's going to be okay." He smiled.

……_**.Bwaaaaaahhhh…….**_

Crocus was also forming tears of his own.

* * *

_**Bwaaaaaaaahhhhh…..**_

Katara and Nami gasped, and glanced around.

It stopped. The acid stopped sloshing and there were no more loud crashing noises.

'_Did Crocus did it? Did he help Laboon?'_

"Um, I don't speak whale, but I think that's a sure sign that he stopped." Nami said.

After saving Luffy and the other two from the gastric acid, the rest of the crew were now interrogating Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday, who were sitting on the floor exhausted from swimming in the acid.

Katara examined them; even though they dress weirdly, she couldn't help but feel some bad vibes coming from these two, which mainly is because they were carrying big weapon-looking things with them.

They all gathered around the two, with Nami Usopp, Zoro, and Katara standing in front of them, Sanji crouching beside Miss Wednesday and apparently taking in her beauty with a heart above his head, and Luffy sitting on the front rail behind them.

"Alright, talk. What sort of business do you have with the whale?" said Zoro.

The two were nervous, but kept their cool. Miss Wednesday whispered to Mr. 9. "Mr. 9, these people are pirates!"

"Yes, that's painfully obvious, Miss Wednesday. But, if we speak to their humanity and compassion, then they'll understand our situation……maybe…." whispered Mr. 9.

Katara looked at them oddly. "Um…..we can hear you, you know that? And what situation?"

The mystery people jerked in surprise. Miss Wednesday stuttered, "W-w-well, y-y-you see….."

"DON'T LISTEN TO THEM KATARA!"

Katara and the rest turned her attention to Crocus, who's standing on the platform.

"They are nothing more than just thieving parasites! I'm surprised they're still here! I go very weary of this! And for the last time, AS LONG AS I DRAW BREATH, YOU WILL NOT LAY A SINGLE FINGER ON LABOON!!"

The crew and Katara, minus Luffy, were all astonished at Crocus's determination. Katara looked back at the two and wondered what their motives are.

"Hey, who's the old guy?" Luffy said in confusion.

Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday chuckled. They were grabbing the handles on their bazookas.

"You can't bully us in abandoning our mission." said Miss Wednesday.

"That's right. We were sent on this mission to hunt and retrieve this whale to our village, and we will not let you interfere! And since we are inside its stomach, that leaves us just to make a new blowhole for him!" Mr. 9 said with an evil smile.

They stood up, standing side by side with their bazookas heaved on their shoulders.

Katara gasped. Once again, she doesn't know much about the modern stuff, but if she's correct, these type of weapons they were carrying are the very destructive kind. Like the cannon that one of these pirates shot Laboon at.

And they were going to shoot their weapons while inside Laboon! If they shoot now, then the inside of his stomach will….!

"NO!!" screamed Katara.

"FIRE, BABY!" shouted Mr. 9.

_**BOOM!**_

_**BOOM!**_

Katara watched in horror as the speeding cannonballs made its way to Laboon's inner stomach near the doors. The pirates also looked on in horror as the explosives were about to hit it. Luffy just looked confused right now at what was happening.

But the unthinkable happened.

Crocus jumped at the line of fire.

_**BA-BOOOOOM!!!**_

The pirates gasped.

Luffy looked surprised.

And Katara…..just watched in tears and screamed.

"**NOOOOOOO!!!!**"

* * *

(End chapter)

Yes, a cliffhanger. Man, I'm evil. :P

Oh no! Crocus jumped in the line of fire! DID HE SURVIVE!? ………Well, it's obvious if you haven't read the manga. But I'm sure as heck not going to tell you! XD

Well, I got nothing to say except I hope this is a decent(and good) chapter for you all! Please review and tell me what you think! :D

Also, if anyone can beta this story for me, I would appreciate it! :)


	4. Setting Sail

Wow! My first 1,000 hits story! Alright! Thanks guys! :)

Also, just a heads up, I'm kinda using some dialogue from the Funimation dub of One Piece in this chapter. Don't worry, I won't be doing this often. I just needed to borrow some lines and dialogue from the anime in this chapter, because really, I can't think of what to write for the characters in same situations that are I already seen before. You guys know what I'm saying? :/

Alright, onto chapter four! X)

* * *

The crew stood there astonished at the brave act. They couldn't believe it.

Luffy sat there with a look of surprise on his face.

And Katara stood with her eyes watering fully, letting tears flow down her face in despair as she saw Crocus's body descending to the gastric acid.

"No......" she said softly. "No……"

And Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday?

They just laughed at Crocus's attempt.

Katara's eye's widened. She gritted her teeth. She gripped the railing hard. Anger was boiling inside of her.

How could they? How could they show no remorse? How could they show no regret?

How could they _**laugh**_!

The tears kept coming. She couldn't stop. These….horrible people were just laughing.

"Why……are you **LAUGHING!**" she turned around and roared at the two with such force.

Nami, Sanji, Usopp and Zoro jerked in surprised. Luffy blinked.

Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday abruptly stop their laughing and were also stunned by Katara's outburst.

"WHY THE _**HELL**_ ARE YOU TWO_** LAUGHING**_! YOU TRY TO KILL AN INNOCENT WHALE THAT'S BEEN GONE THROUGH SO MUCH, AND YOU TRY TO BLOW A _**FREAKING **_HOLE INTO HIM, AND YOU _**LAUGH **_AT A MAN THAT YOU _**SHOT**_ AT, THAT WAS TRYING TO _**PROTECT **_HIM FROM YOUR STUPID WEAPONS!" she screamed out, tears flowing down.

Luffy looked backed at the two with a frown on his face. He didn't like the sound of that.

Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday were half-frighten at Katara's rage, but Mr. 9 quickly regained himself and looked at Katara with a sneer. "Hey, look girl, it's just business. If he gets in the way, he fries along with the whale we're trying to bring back to our village. Besides, why do you care! You just appeared out of nowhere! I should question _you_ why you're here! We've been trying to get this whale for a day now, and we haven't seen you around until recently, so what's _your _deal? Where did you come from, huh! And what do you care about some stupid whale and its foolish owner!"

Katara's eyes widen in anger as her lower lip quivered. That last part did it. She had enough. Katara raised her arms. The crew looked on in curious interest along with Miss Wednesday, who at the same time felt uneasy. Mr. 9 just raised an eyebrow. And Luffy…..still blinked.

As Katara was continuing raising her arms, she forced them down, summoning an acid tendril.

Nami's eyes bulged out of her sockets, while her mouth dropped opened in shock. Zoro and Sanji just looked dumbfounded. Usopp's expression was of comic proportions, as his jaw dropped opened and his eyes nearly popped out of its sockets. Luffy was taking in the whole thing with his mouth forming an oval 'O' and had little sparkles in his eyes.

Meanwhile with Mr. 9, his eyes were wide as saucers in fear, with his jaw dropping. Miss Wednesday widened her eyes in fear as well and began trembling.

Katara had a hatred look in her eyes. She then began to say, "First of all; _**DO NOT**__ CALL LABOON STUPID_. Second; Crocus is **NOT A FOOL!**" And with that, she maneuvered the tendril to her right and slammed it into Mr. 9's side, sending him flying and screaming past Luffy and out of the ship, smashing into the stomach wall. He slid down and fell into the acid.

The pirates were really caught off guard by this sudden phenomenon. Luffy was just awestruck at Katara's ability.

Katara's nostrils flared as she turned her attention to Miss Wednesday. Miss Wednesday was shaking in fear now, clutching on to her bazooka. Katara pulled the tendril out of the lake of acid, and formed it into one big liquid acid ball. She quickly performed a maneuver and used her right hand to perform a slicing technique with her bending and sliced the top of the bazooka Miss Wednesday was holding. Miss Wednesday yelp.

"W-wait! P-p-please!" Miss Wednesday pleaded.

Katara ignored her beseech and formed the liquid in her hands threateningly. Miss Wednesday stood there, petrified.

Nami, Usopp and Sanji looked on in worry. Zoro narrowed his eyes. And as for Luffy, his expression changed into a serious frown. He really did like those tricks that girl did, but from the look he's now seeing from the girl, he figured that she would might really hurt the jerk woman. Sure, they shot the old guy, but he didn't want her to do anything drastic.

Before Katara could lift an arm, Luffy grabbed her left wrist, making Katara lose her concentration and dropping the gastric acid on the floor.

"Let go!" Katara yelled. "Let go! She needs to pay! I won't let her get away with this!" she said as she struggled with the lanky young man's surprisingly strong grip. She tried to pound her free hand on him, but Luffy grabbed her right wrist too.

Luffy said to Katara seriously. "Hey, she gets the picture. Don't do anything you'll regret later on."

"REGRET! I will have no regret on what I'm about to do! They killed him! They KILLED Crocus! He was helping me! I have no other friend to help me now!" Katara cried out, tears pouring from her eyes. She tried to free herself from the straw hat boy's grip, but it proved unsuccessful.

"You silly girl! I'm not done just yet!"

Katara blinked. That…..that voice. Could it really be…..?

Katara and the pirates - including Miss Wednesday - turned their head to locate the voice. Then, in the distance, Katara saw......

Her eyes widened with her mouth slightly opened. She regained custody of her wrists back from Luffy and leaned on the rails. "CROCUS!"

Near the wall, in the acid was Crocus, who looked pretty banged up, but was fine nonetheless. He was also carrying Mr. 9 over his shoulder, in which he was knocked out cold.

Crocus smirked at Katara. She couldn't believe it. Katara grinned happily.

"He's alive!" Nami said with a reassuring smile. Zoro and Sanji smiled a knowing smile in relief.

Miss Wednesday, from all the drama, fainted.

"See? He's alright!" said Luffy as he smiled cheerfully.

"Wait, you knew!" Ussop said astonished.

"Nah, just figured." Luffy said.

"YOU FIGURED!" yelled Usopp incredulously at Luffy.

* * *

After getting Crocus out of the acid, the pirates and Katara, along with the two mysterious visitors, are now on one of Crocus' man made islands. They are on the palm tree island, with Crocus sitting and resting on his lounging lawn chair. Katara was next to him making sure he was alright, while the pirates were all gathered around, wanting explanations. The two troublemakers were tied up, Mr. 9 still a little dazed from the force of the hit, while Miss Wednesday was unconscious.

Nami was first to speak. "Okay, so just to be clear, you're name is Crocus, and her name is Katara. And where we're in right now, is a giant whale named Laboon?"

"Correct." Crocus said simply.

Katara studied the pirates in front of her. They didn't look like any ordinary pirates like she ever seen. They dressed in what looked like to be casual clothes in this world. And they don't look like the type of pirates that can be anywhere near crooked, especially their supposed captain Luffy, who is happily climbing the palm tree on the island. The girl named Nami was standing behind the tied up two and questioning Crocus and Katara at the moment.

Nami kind of makes Katara a little uneasy because of her somewhat 'in control' attitude. She actually thought Nami was the captain, what with her somewhat authority towards the rest of the crew. Zoro also makes her a little anxious, cause he always seems to have a serious frown on his face – well, not all the time, he just looks intimidating. Sanji on the other hand, she doesn't know what to think about him. He likes to flirt, that was much she knows about him, but he also carries a calm cool atmosphere around him. Usopp seemed to be a decent looking person, although she wonders about that nose of his.

Luffy…..well, she's beginning to question about him. First of all, he…..well, **STRECTHED **his arm out. She might need to ask him about that later. And from what she have seen from Luffy, he appears to be…..well, not intelligent, but he seems to have a little bit of spark of intellect in him when he tried to confront her for not slicing up Miss Wednesday. And quite frankly, she was glad he did. She didn't want to have a heavy conscious for killing someone out of pure hatred and anger. But…..it was still inexcusable for what they did. And she is not going to forgive them anytime soon.

Back to the conversation at hand, Nami said, "Alright then, now if you don't mind me asking Katara here, how did you do what you just did right now? Was that a Devil Fruit ability?"

Blinking at the question, Katara remembered something about Devil Fruits and how they possess powers when eaten.

"Yeah, that was awesome! If you eaten a Devil Fruit, then what kind is it! I'm a 'Rubber Man', see!" Luffy pulled and stretched the side of his mouth, indicating who he is.

Katara looked at Luffy in shock. _'That's what a Devil Fruit does to people? Oh my gosh!' _Katara scratched out on asking where he got his powers from.

Katara now looked more uneasy. "Um…..w-well….I-I…" Can she tell these pirates who she is and where she came from? It would be awkward to tell them, and she doesn't know where to start. "W-well, my n….name is Katara, o-of course, and…..w-well….I-I'm not-"

"She doesn't want to talk right now." Crocus said cutting in. Katara turned to Crocus in surprise. Nami blinked as the rest of the crew. "She will tell you when she feels like it." Crocus finished.

Nami glanced at Katara who looked nervous. She shrugged "Okay. Whenever she's ready."

"Katara looks really adorable trying to think on what she had to say." Sanji said in love cook mode.

"Give it a rest, Sanji." Usopp said in a dull tone.

"Alright, then I'll ask this; who are these guys?" she pointed at the tied duo.

Crocus explained. "These people are creeps from a nearby island. They were trying to capture Laboon so they can use his whale meat to feed their village. If they did succeed, then his meat would feed the whole village for three years."

Katara angrily scowled at the tied up two. Mission or not to feed their village, they will not try to take Laboon.

Crocus continued. "But I won't let them do it! Laboon is a magnificent creature; a island whale, one of the most largest species in the world that can only be found in the West Blue." He narrowed his eyes soberly. "I won't absolutely allow them to slaughter him just for food." He then closed his eyes solemnly. "It's a shame that he's stuck here far away from his domain. There's also a reason why all that rumbling occurred."

"Katara said it was because Laboon was ramming the Red Line. Why is that?" Nami questioned.

Crocus opened his eyes and gave a smile to Katara. He then explained the reasoning why, telling them the story of Laboon and his human friends, in a more in-depth version.

After a while of Crocus telling more of the story, he activated the giant doors, and soon the pirate crew, along with the tied up duo they dragged, all boarded on their ship, while Crocus and Katara were riding on the man made island ship. They entered through the opened doors, going through the canal.

The crew of the ship, who heard the whole story, was looking thoughtful.

"Wow. So the reason the whale Laboon is doing all of this is because he wants to go back to his friends." Usopp said, letting it all sink in.

"But the whale is too stubborn to actually listen to anyone and goes and gets himself in more harm when ramming the Red Line." Sanji said, taking a drag from his cigarette.

Luffy, who was sitting on the very front rail where the figurehead used to be, had a funny look of wonder on his face as he put his hand on his chin.

Zoro looked around the canal. "This is some canal here. Amazing that this whale is still alive from all this constructing you did in his body."

Katara was sitting on the island, looking at all the metal work of the canal. "Yeah! You really did a fantastic job building this without hurting him, Crocus!" she complemented. Crocus smiled.

"Well, they don't call me a doctor for nothing." Crocus said while reading his newspaper.

"Doctor!" said a amazed Usopp.

"Hey, you're a doctor!" Luffy said to Crocus.

"Yes I am, believe it or not. I used to work at a clinic at the cape years ago. Before that I used to be a ship's doctor." Crocus said, turning his newspaper.

"That's awesome! We've been looking for one! Why don't you join us?" Luffy asked with a smile on his face.

Crocus chuckled. "Thanks but no thanks. I don't have the energy like I used to. Besides I'm too old to be sailing the seas. That's a young mans burden."

At the end of the canal was a second pair of giant doors that led outside. They all came to a stop, while Crocus went to a nearby latter near the island. Crocus told Katara to wait there while he opened the giant doors. Crocus opened the metal sliding doors and they were soon floating out of Laboon.

"WHOO-HOO! FRESH AIR AND SKY!" Luffy yelled out happily, the sun shining down on him and the ship.

Katara was glad to be outside again. She grin a happy grin.

When they were outside, Usopp began to ask, "Don't you think fifty years seems to be a bit extreme? Man, those pirates sure know how to test someone's patience!"

"Idiot! Don't you get? This is the Grand Line, his friends are dead." Sanji said bluntly, taking another drag of his cigarette.

Katara looked up over the conversation. Her face turned sad at the fact.

Sanji continued. "That whale can wait forever, but his friends aren't coming back."

Nami agreed. "Sad to say, but that may be true. Back in the day when those guys travel the Grand Line, it was an uncharted sea, a thousand times more dangerous than it is now."

"Hey! How can you all be so pessimistic! You guys don't KNOW if they're dead! They can still go back for him! Come on, have some sympathy! I thought it was really touching! I mean, a whale believing in his friend's promise despite all those years! That's a true bond! Wouldn't you two think so?" Usopp said to Crocus and Katara.

Katara looked sorrowfully grim. She looked over at Crocus who was standing next to the palm tree with the same look on his face. He started, "Indeed. But the lesson here is that reality is cruel." He closed his eyes and put two of his fingers on the bridge of his nose and glasses. "Laboon's cohorts abandoned their quest, turned tail and fled the Grand Line. I heard it from a reliable source."

Katara frown sadly at the distressfulness of just hearing this again.

"What! You mean.....I don't believe it! That's terrible! Why abandon him like that!" Usopp said disbelievingly.

Nami said her part. "You said that they ran away from the Grand Line? Did you know or not that they went through the Calm Belt alive?"

"I'm not too certain." Crocus said. "These are mysterious waters. Seasons, weather, currents, wind direction. On the Grand Line, these elements seem to defy all the laws of nature. Common sense seems useless." He looked on gravely. "But somewhere deep inside my mind……I feel as if they might be dead."

Laboon was now standing upward on the water, doing his usual waiting. Katara stayed silent, but still feels for poor Laboon.

"So what you're basically saying is, is that these pirates are a bunch of cowards that cared more about saving their own asses than keeping a promise to a friend." Sanji said irritably.

Luffy looked at the giant whale. _'Wow, poor guy.' _hethought.

"Why would anyone," Usopp grunted angrily. "-abandon such a loyal creature! Just look at him! It's cruelty on a grand scale!"

Nami wondered something. "But if you known all of this, why haven't you told him? Laboon can obviously communicate with you. He seems to understand humans quite well for a whale."

Crocus sighed. "I did tell him. Every last miserable detail."

* * *

"_They aren't coming back, Laboon." said a thirty-something looking Crocus._

_Laboon, who looked a little smaller, but was still big enough, just floated there. It looked as if he did hear him. But he didn't want to believe it._

"_I know you don't want to hear that, but it's the truth! They fled the Grand Line!"_

_Laboon still just floated there, taking it all in._

"_But the bond you shared with them is real, Laboon! Just as real as the promise they made to return to you that day!" _

"_But you have to face the facts! Those men...are never coming back!"_

_Laboon still floated there, his eyes wide. _

_**BWAAAAAHHHHH!**_

_The vibration of Laboon's howl echoed through the mountain, causing Crocus to cringe. _

"_Laboon! I know you don't want to accept it, but you must realize this is how things really are!"_

_**BWWAAAAAAAHHHH!**_

"_PLEASE LISTEN!"_

_But Laboon didn't. He slammed his tail on the water, creating a small tidal wave, drenching Crocus with sea water from head to toe._

"_Laboon!"_

_Laboon didn't listen. He howled a big wail, creating another sound wave._"That was the day that Laboon begun to howl at Reverse Mountain." Crocus said.

* * *

Katara was wiping the tears away from her eyes from that version of the story. It was truly saddening.

Crocus continued. "And soon after, he began slamming his entire body against the Red Line. It's as if he believes that wall is what keeps his friends away, and by breaking it, he can clear the path for their return." He narrowed his eyes at Laboon. _'At least I hope not now.'_

"I admire his dedication." Sanji said simply.

"Never gave up on them." Usopp said astonished.

Crocus looked up at Laboon in pity. "He refuses to believe me, because he has to admit that it's over. And that terrifies him more than anything. There's no way for him to go back to the West Blue, so what we have here is a paradox of tragic proportions. Laboon is a lost soul dying to live with his friends. And he won't stop until he reaches them."

"That is tragic." Sanji says. "Still with all the creed those pirates put him through, they did the same to you by saddling with their burden. I mean, you done enough for Laboon, what about you?"

Crocus was still looking upwards. "Those scars he carries are deep." He said, mentioning the huge scars on his head. "But those he carries in his heart are deeper. He needs someone to tend to his wounds…..and I'm all he's got."

Katara glanced at Crocus in touched dismay. Crocus was truly a wonderful friend to Laboon. She thought of her friends. How they always made her laugh, give her good advice, always helped her out when things get too tough. She let another tear go down her face. She missed them _so_ much.

While lost in her thoughts, she heard a very loud yell. She abruptly looked up and…..

Her eyes widened in shock.

Luffy, the supposed captain of this strange pirate crew, was holding above him the **ENTIRE **ship's mast over his head.

She was baffled. _'How....what....when....WHAT ON EARTH!' _She thought in astonishment.

The crew and Crocus turned around in surprise to see what the commotion was about.

"What the? Just what is that idiot up to?" Sanji says.

"I swear, don't keep an eye on him for a second, and he's off doing something crazy." Zoro said aggravated.

Luffy then ran at a fast speed and – believe it or not to Katara – ran all the way up to the whale, right to where a bleeding spot is.

"**GUM GUUUM-" **He lifted up the mast and slammed it on the bleeding spot. "**BOUQUET!"**

**SPLISH!**

Katara's jaw DROPPED. Crocus' jaw DROPPED. The whole crew's jaws DROPPED.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" screamed his crew and Crocus.

'_He....he really _IS_ insane!' _Katara thought unbelievingly.

Laboon's eye was watering from the pain he was now registering, and he wildly began trying to shake the mast and Luffy off of him, as Luffy was hanging on the mast for dear life. Waves were surfacing from all the shaking Laboon was causing, and it was rocking and raising the ship and island up and down. Laboon narrowed his eyes. He jumped out of the water and smashed the tip of his head onto the rock cliff side.

Katara gasped and put her hands to her mouth. _'Oh my gosh! No!'_

"THE BOY! HE'S DONE FOR!" Crocus yelled.

"Oh, don't worry! He's tougher than he looks!" Nami yelled back at Crocus.

Katara looked on at the fight in amazement. Nami was right! She can see Luffy on land over there! He looked pretty beaten up, and was ready to go at it some more.

Luffy prepared for Laboon's second slam down, and dodged it barely. Luffy sent a stretching punch to the whale's eye, making it a direct hit. Laboon turned to use his tail to swat Luffy, knocking him over to the lighthouse.

Laboon was about to charge towards Luffy to finish the fight. Katara watched on with horror in her eyes. She had to do something, anything! She was about to yell them to stop when Luffy said something.

"IT'S A DRAW!"

Laboon stop in confusion. Katara froze in shock. The rest looked on.

Luffy stood up and put his straw hat on. He chuckled and said "I'm stronger than I look! But I think you already knew that though, didn't you!"

Laboon stared at him.

"I'm always up for a fight! And if you want a battle, I'll gladly give you one! You're friends gave you some fighting skills, did they? Well, I'm strong enough to rival any punch those guys have!" Luffy grinned. "How about this? When we're done traveling the Grand Line, I'll promise you that when I come back, we'll fight again! Are you up to it!"

Katara's mouth dropped open. She couldn't believe it. Well, she also couldn't believe what she saw either. Someone stretching his limbs and battling a giant whale certainly is out of the ordinary. But what she couldn't believe is that Luffy PLANNED this. Katara's expression softened and smiled.

Laboon was touched. He understood Luffy's words and his eyes started to tear up.

He accepted it.

The pirate crew smiled and grin at the display, as well as Crocus.

"**Bwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!"**

* * *

After the bout with Luffy and Laboon, they all soon made it to the cape, with Sanji starting to cook, Usopp fixing the mast on the ship, Zoro sleeping on deck, Nami about to draw down maps, Luffy doing something special for Laboon.

The two mystery people, Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday, apparently woken up and high tailed it after the rest of them were distracted by Laboon and Luffy. But it didn't matter to them or Katara – she'll make sure they'll never come back again.

Luffy painted – rather poorly, Katara and Crocus added – a remembrance symbol on Laboon's giant scared forehead, which was the pirate symbol of Luffy's ship; a skull and crossbones with a straw hat on it.

"There, finished!" Luffy said proudly. "It's a rushed paint job, so I don't want you to go rubbing it off anywhere or hitting your head! That mark is a promise that I'll come back and do battle with you! Understand?" he said with a grin. Laboon grunted a 'Yes.'.

Katara and Crocus both smiled. It looks like Laboon would be quite happy for a while. They were glad that Laboon would move on, holding on to another promise from another person.

Crocus then thought of something. He looked over at the pirate crew, who were doing their things, and at Katara in thought. _'Hmm.....maybe.....'_ Crocus began to go over to where the girl named Nami is. Katara noticed he was walking away to where Nami is and began to follow him, until Luffy called out to her.

"Hey, Katara!" Luffy said. Katara turned around and saw Luffy coming over. She blinked cautiously. _'I wonder what he wants?' _she wondered.

"Hey! Are you gonna tell us now on what kind of power you got!" Luffy said with excitement in his eyes.

Katara stood still. She felt like she was under the spotlight again. "Um.....well…." she struggled hesitantly, not wanting to reveal any information that Luffy would find her crazy.

"Or are they mystery powers?" said Luffy in a funny naïve way.

Katara jolted her attention back to Luffy. _'Mystery powers? What in the....?' _"Um, n-no, they're not 'mystery' powers, they are very much _real_ powers." she said, not knowing what else to say on that part.

"Oooh! Well, what kind are they?" Luffy questioned innocently.

Katara gulped. "I-uh, they…." She looked back at Crocus who was talking to the orange haired girl named Nami, then looked back at Luffy, who has a confused look on his face. Can she tell him? Crocus believed her, so….maybe he would too. It's worth a shot, probably.

Hesitantly, she took a deep breath and said "Um.....well, I do have powers. Water based powers to be exact." Luffy tilted his head, looking interested. "But, before I can get into that, I just want to say that……I'm....not particularly around here." Katara informed him nervously.

"Eh? You don't live here with the old man?" Luffy said puzzled.

"W-well, you can say that." Katara stuttered. "It's just that….I'm…..I'm not from….." she anxiously sighed. She has to get this over with.

"Okay, look, I don't care if you think of me as crazy when I say this but……" She was hesitant. Until she forced it out. "I'm not from this world!" She let out a relieved sigh. "I know it sounds stupid, but I just don't care anymore! I don't know much about where I am, and I don't know anything about these 'Devil Fruits' or whatever, and I don't know much about this world!" She clenched her eyes shut; waiting to for him to say that she was crazy.

"Whoa! You're from another world! That's so AWESOME!" Luffy said enthusiastically.

Katara opened her eyes in shock and blinked dumbly. "Wh-what?"

"Oh man! This is so cool! What kind of world is it!" He said, grinning.

"W-wait! S-so…..you believe me?" Katara said in bafflement. _'Wow.....either he's a very understanding person, or he's.....really that ignorant.'_

Luffy nod excitedly. "Yeah! I kind of thought you were an alien!

"A _what_!" said a confused, and a little offended Katara.

"An alien! Those are people who live on the stars and moon, I think. Hey, are you from the MOON!" Luffy asked with such excitement.

"_What_!" Katara was certainly taken aback by what Luffy was saying to her. "How-what are you-wha-…..huh!"

"COOL! I got to tell Nami, Usopp, Zoro, and Sanji about this!" Luffy ran to where Crocus and Nami are chatting.

Katara just stood there, bewildered. _'And here I was worrying about people calling _me_ crazy.'_Crocus walked to the girl and noticed that she was holding a compass in her hands. He narrowed his eyes. _'A compass? That won't fair well here in the Grand Line.' _"I see you got a compass there." Crocus said to Nami.

* * *

Nami turned to Crocus. "Um, yeah I do." Nami said with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, you might as well throw that away then. Compasses won't work in the Grand Line. It would seem you all came pretty ill prepared." Crocus informed them.

"What!" Nami said surprised. "What do you mean? You mean the compass won't work here?"

Crocus nodded. "Exactly. Open it up and take a look."

Nami did it and gasped, her eyes widening at what she's seeing. "The-the compass! It….it's spinning out of control!"

"This ocean isn't any normal body of water, you know. The islands in the Grand Line are rich in materials and are filled with abnormal magnetic fields. A compass alone won't be able to help you with where you need to go. And to make matters worse, the sea and wind currents show no clear pattern. As a navigator, I'm sure you can appreciate this dilemma." Crocus finished telling her.

"So, t-then, if we don't have a way to tell directions, t-then this whole trip is.......p-pointless…..heh." Nami stuttered in shocked disbelief.

Crocus sighed. "It's a shame, too." He said melancholy. "I wanted to see if you are willing to have Katara on your ship."

"Huh? Have her on our ship? Why's that?" she said in confusion.

"Because she's a girl trying to find her way home." Crocus said.

Nami blinked. "What? What do you mean?" she said a little puzzled.

"You saw her powers didn't you? How she controlled the acid to her will?" Nami nodded. "Well, her powers can reach farther than that, I presume. Water, any type of liquid, she'll bend it."

"Bend it?" Nami said questionably.

Crocus nodded. "That's what she calls it. Believe it or not, she doesn't possess Devil Fruit powers. She was born with it."

"Born with it?" Nami said in amazement.

"Yes. She actually appeared just yesterday, floating out of the water. She speaks of nations of water, fire, air, and earth, places I don't think exist around here in the Grand Line."

"Wait a minute, what are you saying? Are you saying that Katara isn't-"

"HEY NAMI!" yelled an excited voice.

Crocus and Nami turned their attention to Luffy, who was running up to them.

Nami sighed in frustration. Just when she was about know something "Yes, Luffy?"

"Guess what? I just learned that Katara is an alien!" Luffy said in sheer enthusiasm

"I am not!" said an annoyed Katara, who was walking up to them.

"A what?" Nami raised an eyebrow.

Crocus chuckled. "Well, you can probably say that she is."

"Crocus!" Katara said incredulous at him.

"Wait! You mean……she's not from this world!" Nami said in shock.

Katara froze. She started to fidget a little. "Um…..would you think I'm weird if I say 'yes'?" she said shyly.

Nami's eyes are widened and her mouth was open in awe. "R....really? You AREN'T from this world?" she said.

Katara started to feel awkward. "Um, yeah.......I honestly don't know much about where I am. I just pop out of the sea and Crocus rescued me, and I've been residing at his house since."

Nami couldn't believe it. Out of all the things she saw robbing from the East Blue, this is the most bizarre. She was now looking at a live alien girl in front of her. _'I guess this is an example on how weird the Grand Line is.' _she thought. "Wow….."

Crocus looked over at Katara and gave her sober look. "We were talking about you to see if you wanted to go with these pirates to find a way back to your home."

Nami shook out of her shock. "What!"

"Hey, that would be GREAT! She can join us!" Luffy said happily, eager to have a new crewmate.

"W-wait a second, what!" Katara looked at Crocus with confusion in her eyes.

"Don't worry, it's not an issue now. It would seem this young pirate crew does not have a Log Pose." Crocus said.

"A Log Pose? What is that?" Nami asked.

"The Log Pose is a special compass that records the magnetic fields in the islands on the Grand Line. They have a more unusual shape than the ordinary compass."

"You mean like this?" Luffy said holding up a small dome like wrist accessory that has a twin pointed needle hanging inside of it.

Crocus blinked. "Um, yes, like that."

"WHAT THE-WHERE DID YOU GET THAT!" Nami shouted, bonking Luffy's head.

"Oww! It was lying on the ship! I think those two strange people dropped it." Luffy said rubbing his head, muttering 'Why did you hit me?'.

"Well, I guess you're all set then." Crocus smiled.

"Wait, what's this all about me going with them!" exclaimed Katara.

Crocus sighed inwardly. "Katara, it would happen sooner or later. I can't keep you here forever. You need to sail on the Grand Line to find a way back to your home, and these people could be your only chance to do so."

"But……but-" Katara tried to reasoned, but Crocus stopped her.

"Don't worry about me, especially Laboon. He seems to be quite at peace now thanks to this young man." Crocus said, mentioning Luffy. _'And to you too, Katara.' _He thought.

"Heh, hey it was nothing!" Luffy grinned.

"W-well....." Katara was trying to think on what else to say, until a loud voice interrupted her thoughts.

"NAMI-SWAN! KATARA-DARLING! FOOD IS READY!" yelled the happy chef Sanji, carrying exotic fish dishes. "Hey, the rest of you, get over here you idiots!" Sanji's tone turned to annoyance towards the boys.

"Oh boy! FOOD!" Luffy dashed towards the table.

"Alright, time to eat!" Usopp said as he climbed the rope latter onto the cliff.

"Well, I guess I can tell me about the Log Pose while we eat?" Crocus said.

"That would be fine." Nami smiled. She turned to Katara. "Would you like to eat with us? Sanji is a great cook and makes some great meals."

"Um…..sure, okay." Katara said.

As they soon sat by the table, Crocus explained about how the Log Pose works. While they were talking, Katara was noticing that Luffy was swiping away each dish of food with his stretchy arms, and devouring the food in one bite. She widened her eyes and grimaced at the display of gluttony. Usopp seem to noticed her expression and said "Heh, sorry about our captain, he does this when he's 'hungry'."

"Uh, okay….." she still grimaced. She can't look away from the spectacle. _'Luffy would definitely have a run for Sokka's money.'_

"You might need to hurry on eating before he swipes yours." Usopp informed.

Katara jumped back to reality. "Oh! Um, t-thanks."

"Luffy, you idiot! That's for all of us! And don't go devouring Nami and Katara's food!" He said as he dropped kick him on the head.

"OW! Why is everyone hitting me today?" Luffy said with a whine.

As soon as they were eating, two surprise guests showed up climbing up the rope latter with exhaustion. It was Miss Wednesday and Mr. 9.

Katara gasped and took full caution. _'It's them again! What do those creeps want now?'_

"Hey, it's those weirdo's again." Luffy stated calmly.

"What do you two want now?" Nami said.

"Here, let me help you to your feet, Miss. You must be famished. Have some food." Sanji offered to Miss Wednesday.

"Oh, um, thank you." said Miss Wednesday as she was brought to her feet.

Mr. 9 stood up and cleared his throat "We.....have a request."

"Is that so? What kind of request?" Nami said.

"Well, unfortunately, we lost our ship and we want you to help us sail to our home of Whiskey Peak." Mr. 9 said simply.

"And why should we do that? You tried to hurt Laboon." Nami said accusingly at them.

"Who are you guys anyways?" Usopp said to them.

"We can't tell you! Our motive right now is just to go home." Miss Wednesday said.

"That's right! Our work requires being as secretive as possible! Our company's motto is 'mystery'!" said Mr. 9

"And that's all we can say! We appeal to your kindness and compassion!" said Miss Wednesday.

"Don't do it. These two fools are dishonest to the core, they can't be trusted." Crocus said, frowning and arms crossed.

Katara looked at the two with harsh narrowed eyes. The two noticed her presence and both had looks of fear. "I don't know who you work for, but I for one am with Crocus. I don't trust you two."

"Okay. You can come with us." Luffy said.

"Huh!" said the two mystery people.

Katara turned her head to Luffy in complete shock. He's letting them join them! "You mean you're going to let them join you!"

"Well, they said they their home is Whiskey Peak, so we might as well go there, right?" Luffy said.

"Luffy, are you serious! I mean these people obviously look like a bunch of shady characters, so why should we take them anywhere!" Usopp said.

"Hey, it's fine. Don't sweat the small stuff. We'll be alright!" Luffy said confidently.

Crocus spoke up once more. "Now wait a second. Choose your route carefully. Once you head out from here, you will be committed to that course, so there's no turning back."

That's okay! If we don't like it, we'll just try a different route next time!" Luffy grinned.

Crocus smiled. "I see." He chuckled. He turned to Katara. "Katara, may I speak to you for a second?"

"Uh….alright." Katara followed Crocus.

As they found a spot to talk, Crocus then said "How do you feel on going with those pirates?"

Katara blinked at the question, and lowered her head to think. "I…..I don't know…."

Crocus put a hand on her shoulder. "This may be your ONLY chance, Katara. I'm not forcing you into to doing this. I just want you to think about it. These young pirates seem to look like a nice bunch. They're not the kind that you would think they would be. They're probably just kids who want to achieve their dreams, more than anything else." He smiled down at her. "They may be the key for you to go back to your home."

Katara stood there and thought about it. Crocus was right, this may be her only chance to actually go and find her way back. It didn't take a genius to figure that out. But…..

"What about Laboon and you?" Katara said with sadness in her voice.

Crocus smiled warmly. "Like I said, don't worry about me and Laboon. Laboon is at peace now, and I'll be quite fine around here."

Katara felt small tears forming onto her eyes. "I.....I don't know if…..if what I'm looking for will be where they're going."

"Well, you'll never know if you go." Crocus continued to smile warmly.

Katara felt more tears coming down her cheeks. She doesn't know where she might be going, but she has to be strong. She will take the risk. Just to see them again.

Katara then gave Crocus a big generous hug. "Thank you for everything, Crocus."

Crocus smiled and returned the hug, trying hard to fight off the tears, but he let some out either ways. "You're very welcome, Katara." He felt like he was letting his daughter go, which was funny, because he doesn't have one. This must be what it feels like, even if though their time with each other was short. Hopefully Laboon won't feel depressed when she leaves…..

Crocus let go of the hug, and said "You might need to say goodbye to Laboon soon."

Katara nodded and thanked Crocus again. She turned around and went to Laboon, who was watching everyone from the sidelines of the sea.

Crocus looked back at the pirates who were doing their own things. He might as well tell them that they will have a new crew member. He walked to where Luffy is sitting and said onto them "Well, do I have some news for you kids! It looks like Katara wants to join your crew."

"What? Really!" exclaimed Usopp.

"Alright! We get to have an alien on our crew!" Luffy pumped his fist up in the air.

"Wait, a WHAT!" Usopp questioned out loud.

"An alien! Katara's one, just so you know!"

Usopp blinked. Where was he when this news occurred? …..Oh, wait. Yeah, he was fixing the mast that Luffy ripped off.

"That's wonderful! Another wondrous beauty on board!" said a love stuck Sanji.

Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday on the other hand, didn't take too lightly to the news. "WHAT! You mean she'll be on the ship with us!" exclaimed Mr. 9. Miss Wednesday shivered at the thought.

"Wait a minute, she decided to join us? What made her want to leave with us?"

"Well, it would be her will to find her way back home." Crocus stated.

"Oooh! You mean to the moon!" Luffy said.

_**BONK!**_

"Can it, Luffy." Nami said with a clenched fist, while Luffy was rubbing his head muttering 'I keep getting hit today'.

"I want you all to look after her. Don't let anything happen to her." Crocus said in a serious tone.

"Hey, don't worry old man, we won't. You can count on us to bring her back to her home!" Luffy said with a smile.

* * *

Katara walked close to Laboon. He noticed her and gave out a tiny whale sound.

"Hey Laboon." She smiled at the whale.

Laboon gave out a 'hello'.

Katara bit her lip. "I have something to say that's a little hard for me to do."

Laboon gave a sad noise.

Katara sighed. "I have to go now. And…..I won't be coming back." She looked up to Laboon.

Laboon's eye looked sad.

"I'm sorry but…..I have to find my home, where I belong. I….hope you won't feel sad about that."

Laboon floated there in silence. He then made a moan that sound like wasn't loud, but it wasn't soft.

Katara stood there wondering what he could be saying. But as she stood there Laboon went slightly a little closer to the cliff just so she can reach enough to touch him.

Katara began to understand what he was doing. He wanted her to pet him. She reached out a hand and slowly placed it on his skin next to his eye. She smiled sweetly. "I'll miss you Laboon."

Laboon gave out a sweet noise, which she thinks it might mean, 'I'll miss you too'.

* * *

"Okay! The Log Pose is set!" Nami informed.

Everyone – including Katara and the mystery people – was all set to go, including the sleeping Zoro, who was unaware of what's happening.

"Bye, old man! Take care!" Luffy hollered out.

"Have a safe trip, my boy!" Crocus hollered out as well.

Katara, who was standing next to the rails, said her goodbyes as well. "Goodbye Crocus! I'll miss you!"

Crocus gave a heartfelt smile. "Good luck to you, Katara! I hope you find your way home!"

Katara smiled as well, and let the tears drop o her face. "Thank you for everything Crocus! And goodbye Laboon! I'll miss you too!"

Laboon stood up a made a loud whale noise, saying his goodbye.

Luffy shouted out, "Hey! Don't forget our fight Laboon! Be ready when I get back! Bye!"

Laboon gave out another loud noise.

"Alright gang! Whiskey Peak, HERE WE COME!" Luffy yelled.

The ship continued off into the sea, leaving behind their starting point to the Grand Line. Katara didn't know what was waiting ahead of her, but she will soon find out. Wherever they go, she goes. The path will probably be long, but she'll be ready for anything. Just so she can see her friends and family again. Katara gave out a smile.

This is the beginning of her journey……to find her way back home.

* * *

"Could they be the bunch of pirates we've been waiting for all this time? That boy has a strange air about him……eh, Roger?"

Crocus smiled at the ship in the distance.

"…..There she goes. ….Farewell……Katara."

Laboon wailed.

* * *

Woo! I wanted to finish this up fast! If it seems too rushed for you all, I apologize. I just wanted to get this done!

About Luffy and them keeping Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday's Log Pose and not letting Crocus lend his to them, I just couldn't fit the whole 'Luffy getting kicked by Sanji and breaking the Log Pose in the process' thing in the fic because it would've been silly to do so. So I plan to let Nami keep their Log Pose in a 'finders keepers' way. I hope that's alright. ……Seriously, I hope so, I hope I didn't offend anyone. :(

Again, I hope this wasn't too rushed for you all, and I hope you all enjoyed it! Although, I will say this isn't my best chapter.

Also, I REALLY might need a beta for this story, so anyone give me a call if you're interested. :)

Please review! :D


	5. Nakama

Thank you all so much for all of the reviews! It makes me a happy camper! X)

Also, big thanks to pretty in green for making the Avatar bit below! ^_^ Couldn't have done it without you! :D

Here's chapter five! :)

* * *

The sun today was shining brightly on the sea, with a lone ship cruising along the water. This ship however, was a pirate ship, with a crew of five people, including on board a new member, plus with two guests.

The new member, Katara, was leaning at the back side of the ship, with her hands on the rails. She gazed at the wide open blue sea, mesmerized on how beautiful it looked. _'Wow... it's so beautiful!' _Never had she been so proud that her element was just so wonderfully breathtaking.

She joined this unusual crew to find her way back to her home world. Although she was on a pirate ship, she was convinced enough to know that these 'pirates' weren't exactly the scoundrel types, which is strange as it may seem, but she figured everything was strange so far in this world, with weird attire, strange powers, and odd people, she might as well just except it. At least these pirates she's with aren't like the ones back at home.

She frowned. _'I wonder how long I'll be here in this world?' _She thought to herself.

She hated to be far apart from her friends and family. And that dragon in her dream... it said it was sorry. But for what? It surely didn't send her here in this foreign place, did it?

She sighed deeply, her head lowered. She just didn't know….

Katara turned around, glancing to see each of her three new crew members: Luffy, Usopp, and Zoro. She looked to see Usopp still working on the mast to keep it more secure, Zoro still resting on the floor, and Luffy lying on the now fixed figurehead – which was a weird animal's head. The others were probably in the ship's cabins. Katara would think that Sanji would be in the kitchen, which she must mention his cooking back at the cape was outstanding - even though she had to eat fast because of Luffy. Nami and those two jerks were off somewhere in the ship.

Katara wasn't too fond of Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday – if those were their real names – being on the ship. She'll have to keep a secure eye on those strange individuals.

Katara could hear the hammering Usopp was emitting. She gave a thoughtful look and decided if maybe she could help. He didn't have to do it alone, and it would pass the time. Plus, she would like to know more about her new crewmates. So, her brain coming to a decision, she walked towards Usopp to where he was pounding the hammer.

Usopp growled in aggravation. "Darn it Luffy, you never think, do you?" he said as he pounded the nail with his hammer.

"Um… do you need help?" Katara asked hesitantly.

Usopp turned his head in surprise to Katara who beside him. "Oh! Uh, hi Katara! Um… what did you say?"

"Well, uh... I wanted to know if you needed help with what you're doing. You look like you might need some, so... can I be of assistance?" Katara said.

Usopp blinked. "Wow... thanks!" he grinned. "Sure thing! Here, grab a hammer and some nails and start hammering!"

Katara smiled. She leaned down to grab a hammer and some nails and began to work. She hadn't used a hammer before, but she got the hang of it after a while. Katara then decided to ask some questions.

"So… is there any reason you guys are all out here sailing and becoming pirates?" Katara asked.

Usopp stopped hammering and carried a thoughtful expression. "Well, to achieve our dreams, of course."

"Dreams?" Katara questioned.

"Yeah, pretty much. I want to become a brave warrior of the sea!" Usopp grinned, pointing his thumb at himself.

"Really?" Katara said, truly interested. "That sounds pretty cool!"

Usopp chuckled and puffed his chest. "Yes, that does sound cool, doesn't it? Of course, I already battled against giant sea monsters and a million pirates, so my reputation is already soaring through the seas! And everywhere, my name is etched into the minds of pirates and people all over! And that name is none other than me! CAPTAAAAAIN USOPP!" Usopp struck a pose.

Katara just looked at him in bafflement. "Um... o… kay?"

A tired voice called out to her. "Don't listen to him, he's just telling lies." The voice proved none other than Zoro, who woke up from Usopp's exaggerated tall tales.

Usopp turned to Zoro in irritation. "Hey! Shouldn't you be sleeping!?"

"Hey guys. What're you all doing?" Luffy asked, appearing suddenly next to Usopp and Katara, giving them a shock.

Katara gave out a yelp, whilst Usopp gave out a yell.

Zoro grimaced at the all the noise and decided to get up and rest at the back deck, muttering, "Too much damn noise."

Usopp turned to Luffy. "Luffy! Don't do that!"

"Do what?" Luffy questioned innocently.

Usopp sighed. "Never mind. Katara and I are fixing the mast that YOU ripped off."

"Hey! That sounds fun! Can I join?"

"If you think fixing a mast is fun, then sure. The more the merrier. Grab a hammer." Usopp said.

Luffy grabbed a hammer and sat down to start pounding nails into the mast. But try as he might, he kept pounding his fingers and thumbs instead. "OW!"

"Luffy! Are you okay?" Katara asked in concern.

Luffy waved his hand a bit and sucked on his thumb. "Yeah, I'm fine. This isn't as fun as I thought it would be, though." He frowned.

"Well, you're not going anywhere until we fix this mast! It was your fault in the first place, you know!" Usopp said.

"You must really work hard to keep this ship in good shape, don't you?" Katara said, pounding the nails gently.

Usopp turned to Katara. "Well, yeah! Although I'm not a shipwright, I'm trying my best to keep the Going Merry stable! This was a gift, just so you know!"

'_Going Merry? That must be the name of the ship.' _"A gift? Who gave it to all of you?" asked Katara, curious.

"It's from Usopp's friend, Kaya, after saving her and Usopp's village from a bad pirate named Kuro." Luffy answered for Usopp.

Katara raised her eyebrows in interest. "Really!?"

"Yeah! Luffy's crew and I stopped a scheme from an evil pirate name Kuro for posing as a butler in my friend Kaya's mansion so he could get her money!" Usopp declared.

"Oh!" Katara was now deeply intrigued by this. "Um… do you mind if I hear the story?"

Usopp stopped his hammering and turned and blinked at her. He then grinned. "Of course not!" he raised his head high. "I would be glad to tell you the adventures of Captain Usopp!"

Katara giggled and listened. Usopp, along with Luffy, explained the adventure to her. Usopp explained how he was the town liar and how he always went around town screaming lies at the top of his lungs about pirates attacking the village. He also told of his friends, Pepper, Carrot, Onion and Kaya. Usopp and Luffy then told of the scheme Kuro was plotting and how they fought him and his band of ferocious pirates. Although Usopp said a white lie or two about dealing with most of them, Luffy plainly stated that that didn't happen. But Katara just giggled at Usopp's exaggerating lie, knowing full well that it wasn't true. Luffy then told Katara how he took care of Kuro with an attack called the Gum Gum Bell: a stretching head butt attack. Katara was thoroughly entertained by the story.

"Wow…..that's amazing!" Katara said, truly amazed by the story. "And then you joined Luffy's crew?" she asked Usopp.

Usopp formed a big smile on his face as he pounded the mast. "Yep! And since then, we went through many adventures while traveling the East Blue ocean! I even faced and beat a Fishman pirate!"

Katara looked puzzled. "A Fishman pirate?"

"Yeah!" Usopp explained. "They're a race of people who have all the attributes of a fish! Each one can be any different type of fish!

Luffy chuckled. "Usopp may have beaten a Fishman, but so did Zoro and Sanji! Me? I defeated their captain!"

"You did?" Katara was once again intrigued. "Where was this?"

"It was at Nami's-" But before he could get another word out, Usopp stopped his hammering and covered Luffy's mouth. Katara blinked.

"Luffy! I don't think we should discuss this story without Nami's permission!" Usopp warned.

Luffy thought over this with his mouth still covered and then nodded an 'ok'. Usopp let go of his mouth and turned to Katara. "Sorry about that, but we don't think we can tell you without Nami's consent. This story is really revolved around her."

"Oh. …Okay." Katara felt awkward, so she decided to think of something else to say. She looked at Luffy. "So… what's your story, Luffy? Why did you decide to become a pirate captain?"

Luffy grinned. "That's easy! So I can become King of the Pirates!"

"... Huh?" said Katara, confused.

"Luffy, I don't think she knows about that position." Usopp reminded Luffy.

"Oh." Luffy put his hand on his chin.

Usopp sighed. "I'll explain. You see, there once was a man named Gold Roger who is claimed to be the 'King of the Pirates'. He achieved everything: wealth, fame, and power. He went through many dangerous adventures, fought strong pirates and monsters, and found lots of treasure. It was then he was captured by the Marines – who works with the World Government – and sent him to his hometown-"

"Which we visited!" Luffy added with his arms crossed, with a jovially expression on his face.

Usopp narrowed his eyes at Luffy before continuing. "Yes, _which we visited_, to be executed. Before he died though, he said to everyone out there that 'if they want his treasure, they have to find it!', that he left everything he owned in one place; this was later known as the 'One Piece': the legendary treasure. And after that, they executed him!" Usopp used the slicing neck motion to prove his point. "Thus, began what they call the 'Great Pirate Era'!"

Katara was astounded by the story she heard. It would seem that a lot of pirates roam around this world, all because of this one man. She may not know anything whatsoever about the world in which she is occupying in, but she did learned one thing: this world apparently revolves around pirates. She turned to Luffy. "So, you want to become a… Pirate King?"

Luffy grinned widely. "Sure do! That, and be a great pirate who goes on many adventures!"

"But, aren't pirates like... well, no offense, but… dastardly people?" Katara questioned.

Luffy's grin turned into humorous frown. "Hey, not all of them are bad! I know one guy and his crew who aren't like that!"

Katara was once again curious. "Really? Who?"

Before Luffy could answer, Sanji came out of the kitchen carrying an exotic drink, saying, "Katara-Darling, I've made a treat for you from the bottom of my heart~~~!" and practically danced down to where she was, in love-cook mode.

But Sanji stopped his love-cook dance when he saw Katara doing what looked like physical labour on the mast. He turned to Luffy and Usopp in anger. "Hey! What are you two crap-heads making Katara do!?"

Katara jumped in shock with wide eyes. Usopp jumped as well and stuttered. "U-um…"

"Katara is helping us hammer the mast!" Luffy said with a grin as he pounded his thumb with the hammer again. "Ow!"

"You're MAKING Katara hammer the mast for you jerks!?" Sanji bellowed, enraged, completely mishearing the word 'helping'.

"Wha-, no, wait! I _wanted_ to help." Katara tried to clear up. But Sanji, of course, when it came to situations like this, didn't listen.

"You bastards! I'm going to kick your asses!" Sanji yelled.

He sped over to lay the beat down on Usopp and Luffy, but paused to give the juice drink to Katara, saying "Here you are!" with a smile, then began chasing the two. Usopp yelped whilst Luffy started running away instinctively. Usopp joined him, trying to escape Sanji's wrath, as they all ran amuck on the middle deck, dodging Sanji's kicks. Katara just looked on in astonishment.

Nami came out of her quarters to see what the commotion was outside, and saw the spectacle before her. She just sighed irritably. She looked over at Katara who had a dumbfounded look on her face. Nami smiled and went down to the lower deck to stand next to her.

"Hey, Katara." Nami said.

Katara slightly jumped from her voice and turned to her. "Oh! Uh, hi, Nami."

"So, getting used to life on this ship?" Nami said teasingly.

Katara giggled. "Kind of." She glanced at her drink and observed it before taking a sip through the straw. Her eyes widened. "Wow! This is great!"

Nami giggled herself. "Yep, Sanji does make good drinks." she said matter factually.

"Mm-hmm." Katara hummed while sipping through the straw again.

"You know," Katara looked at Nami when she spoke. "-these guys may be dunderheads once in a while... but they are all good friends." Nami said as she smiled at the fighting trio.

Katara stared at Nami thoughtfully. She gazed back at the silly trio and slowly smiled.

'_Friends...' _

Katara may not know when she will reunite with her friends and family, but she can be sure that she'll be comforted due to the fact that she won't be alone in this journey. She already had newfound friendship with these people, and felt right at home.

"Thank you all."

Nami looked over at Katara. "For what?" she asked, although she might know what Katara was thankful for.

"For letting me accompany you all on this ship." Katara said.

Nami smiled. "No problem! We'll find what you're looking for."

Katara eyes widen in surprise at what she said. She felt… touched. She smiled again warmly. "Thank you."

Nami grinned. "Hey, you're part of the crew now! We always help our nakama."

Katara felt like tears were going to well up in her eyes. _'Nakama…' _She didn't know what the word meant, but she was thinking that it probably stood for 'companion' or 'friend'.

And that's what these people are slowly starting to become to her.

Nakama.

* * *

Zoro was lying on the back deck with his eyes closed, wearing a scowl on his face. He could hear all the commotion Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji were making. _'Geez! Can't a guy get any sleep around here!?'_

* * *

_6:30 AM_

Zuko stretched his arms over his head and listened to his stiff joints crack and pop. His golden eyes squinted as the early morning sun hit his eyes. Rubbing his eyes, he pulled the thin covers off of his body as he climbed out bed and walked towards the open window. The sun was only showing itself slightly over the horizon as it cast a golden glow upon the beach and the ocean before him. Zuko turned around and decided to slip into more appropriate day clothing. It didn't sound like anyone was walking around the creaky, wooden floors of the beach house. That didn't surprise him. Being a fire bender meant that he always rose with the sun. As soon as he was dressed for the day, he exited his room and entered the dimly lit hallway.

The group always got up at around sunrise in order to begin Aang's training. So, he walked down the hallway, knocking on everyone's door as he went. First, he lightly tapped on Aang's door. The kid was always a light sleeper, so there was no need to tap on his door too loudly. Suki's door was next. Then he rapped his knuckles multiple times on Sokka's door. He had to stop and bang hard on Toph's door seeing as how she never seemed to like getting up. Then Zuko lightly knocked on Katara's door. As he waited for everyone to exit their rooms, he thought back to last night and the conversation he had with Katara. She seemed really confused and conflicted. It was strange to see her so down when she was normally so strong and optimistic.

'_I hope she's alright_,' he thought.

Aang was the first one to step out of his room. He was already dressed in his training clothes as he happily greeted Zuko. Sokka was the next to walk out, pulling on his boots as he was exiting the room. As soon as they were on securely, he looked around and noticed that the hallway was still dimly lit.

"What a minute. The sun's not even up yet. Why'd you wake us up?" Sokka asked Zuko irritably.

Suki opened her bedroom door next and stepped out, rolling her eyes at her boyfriend.

"For your information, the sun _is_ up. Just look out the window," she explained, turning Sokka's shocked face towards the nearest open window.

A door suddenly slammed open and hit the wall behind it. In the doorway stood Toph, still fussing with her hair and trying to put the tangled mess into a bun. "Whose idea was it to wake up this early anyway? I mean is the sun even completely up yet?"

"Nope," Sokka said from the window. "It's only half up. But it was Zuko's idea to wake up at sunrise," he elaborated.

"Look," Zuko explained. "If we all want Aang to learn fire bending and perfect his earth bending, we need to start early every morning."

"Zuko's right," Aang nodded. "It's better if we have as much time as possible to prepare. Besides, waking up early is very refreshing," he smiled.

"Well I find sleeping until noon even more refreshing," Toph muttered.

It was at that point, that the group noticed someone was missing from the conversation.

"Hey, is Katara up yet?" Suki asked.

Zuko furrowed his brows. "I knocked on her door at the same time I knocked on everyone else's. She's usually up in the mornings without a problem." '_Is she really still hung up about last night?'_

Sokka walked up to Katara's and pounded on her door. "Hey, sis! Wake up!"

No response. The other five friends stood on the other side of the door, completely confused.

Toph kept tapping her foot on the floor. "That's strange…"

"Do you feel something Toph?" Aang asked.

"I'm not entirely sure. I can't see too well on wood, but I don't think there's anyone inside her room."

"Could she already be awake?" Suki asked.

Zuko shook his head. "These floors are old and they creak whenever someone walks on them. I definitely would've heard her if she woke up before I did."

Sokka jiggled the door knob to Katara's bedroom door until it swung open, revealing the inside of Katara's bedroom. Much to everyone's surprise, it was entirely empty. Katara was nowhere inside and her bed didn't even look like it had been slept in. The sheets were perfectly made and unwrinkled. The other five teenagers entered the room in shock. It didn't look like anyone had been inside the room since last night.

"S-She's not here!" Sokka stuttered.

"Wait a minute. This doesn't make any sense. Where could she have gone?" Suki asked.

"Where on earth is she?" Sokka asked. "I thought she had gone to bed last night. It doesn't even look like she slept here last night," he added worriedly.

"Alright, everyone calm down," Aang said. "Maybe she's somewhere in the beach house. Start looking."

Everyone had spread out throughout the entire beach house. Doors were checked, rooms were completely explored, tables were looked underneath, closets were ransacked, and bathrooms were inspected. They all even checked their own rooms. They looked under the beds, behind the dressers, outside their windows, and inside their closets. They all returned to the main room of the beach house, completely at a loss for words.

"Did you find her?" Toph asked everyone.

A large chorus of 'no's was the only response given.

"I can't believe she's not here!" Sokka shouted. "I mean, where in the world could she be!?"

"Sokka calm down," Suki told him.

"I'm not going to calm down! My little sister is missing and no one seems to know where she is!" he yelled back.

Aang watched on as Sokka carried on about losing his little sister. He didn't say anything, but his thoughts travelled back to the night of the Ember Island Players. He remembered the shocked and upset expression on her face after he had kissed her. He also remembered how quickly she had run away from him after he had done it. Aang sighed. He couldn't help but feel horrible. He kept thinking that he probably drove Katara away in response to what he had done to her. Of course, he wouldn't blame her. He had immediately regretted the kiss afterwards. It only made their relationship even more strained than it already was. '_It's probably all my fault_,' he thought bitterly to himself

Zuko sighed. "I should've gone with her when she left the beach house last night," he muttered to himself.

Sokka snapped his head towards Zuko. "What did you say?"

Zuko turned his head towards Sokka questioningly. "What are you talking about? You said that you saw Katara leave?! Why didn't you follow her and make sure she was okay?"

Zuko sighed. "I didn't think…"

"You could've kept an eye on her and then we wouldn't be in this situation," Sokka yelled. "It's probably all your fault that she's gone!"

Toph stomped her foot on the ground and shouted. "Look. Will everyone just **shut up** and **calm down**!? Yelling at each other is not helping!"

Sokka jerked his thumb towards Zuko. "Well, it's this guy's fault that my sister is missing," Sokka stated.

Aang stared down at the floor in discomfort as he quietly shied away from the conversation. Sokka and Zuko kept yelling at each other while Suki was trying her best to calm Sokka down. Toph was the only person that noticed Aang's behavior. She thought of asking him what was wrong, but decided not to say anything.

"Hear me out, will you?" Zuko shouted. "Katara was upset last night when I went to go talk to her. It looked like she needed time alone to think about things so I let her go and went back inside by myself," he explained.

Sokka scowled. "Think about what?"

Aang decided to speak up for the first time since the conversation began. "I think it may be my fault."

The rest of the group turned back towards Aang in confusion. Sokka was about to ask something before Aang spoke up again. "I… well… I, um, kissed Katara," he said quietly.

"What!?" Sokka, Suki, and Toph asked.

Aang scratched the back of his head, avoiding eye contact with everyone. "It was during the intermission of the Ember Island Player's show. It was really stupid. I don't know what I was thinking. I probably upset her and that's why she needed time to think," he said sadly. "Now it's my fault that she hasn't come back yet."

Sokka shook his head in disbelief as he walked towards Aang. He planted both of his hands on the twelve-year-old's shoulders as he questioned him again. "You _kissed_ my _sister_?"

Aang looked away from Sokka's burning glare. "Are you kidding me?!"

Aang looked up with an extremely guilty look on his face. "I didn't mean to…it was an accident. I…"

"I can't believe you kissed my sister! That goes beyond all boundaries!" Sokka yelled. "I thought we were buddies. You don't just go and kiss your best buddy's sister. That just goes against all the rules of manhood. What were you thinking?"

Suki groaned. "Hey!" she yelled. All of the four other people in the room turned to face her. "How about we stop blaming each other on whose fault it was that Katara's gone and start looking for her?"

Toph nodded. "Suki's right. I'm tired of seeing you three idiots fight already. Just put your petty little problems behind you and end this already. We have to try and find Katara. She couldn't have possibly gone that far away."

Sokka looked down at the floor and nodded, realizing that finding his sister was more important than fighting with Aang and Zuko. The five warriors exited the beach house and began looking around the island for any sign of the water bender.

They had split up into groups. Suki had gone with Toph, Zuko had gone with Aang, and Sokka insisted that he look for his sister by himself. They retrieved their Fire Nation disguises and spread out throughout the island. They had traveled as far as the shoreline and searched all around the island's beaches as well as around the other beach houses that were surrounding the area. The group had even returned to the Theater and searched through the crowds of people that were seated, ready to watch a replay of "The Boy in the Iceberg" show. But there was no Katara to be found. Dumbstruck and unsure of what to do next, they decided to retrace their steps and search the island again. Sokka went back towards the beach houses, prepared to ask anyone if they had seen Katara. Toph and Suki went back to the theater and Zuko and Aang started scoping out the beaches again.

"What happens if we don't find her?" Aang had asked as the two of them walked by the many vacationers that were relaxing on the sand.

"We'll find her. Don't worry," Zuko assured. "There's no way she could've possibly left the island, right?"

Aang looked down worriedly, a little skeptical of Zuko's statement, but nodded nonetheless. "You're probably right."

As they were approaching his father's beach house again, Zuko looked to his left and noticed something strange. Behind his father's beach house, there appeared to be more beach houses perched on a tall hill. But what had Zuko rather confused was the small cave that appeared to be located right at the base of the hill. Zuko squinted his eyes to try and get a better look at the cave from where he was standing. Aang saw Zuko straining to see something and looked in the same direction as Zuko. Aang noticed the dark cave as well and turned back towards Zuko.

"I haven't seen that before," Aang commented.

"It's an old cave that used to always be there," Zuko explained. "But we had never travelled that way during all the times my family has vacationed here."

Aang shrugged. "It can't hurt to take a small peek, can it?"

Zuko looked back towards the hill and nodded. With that, Aang and Zuko continued their walk along the beach. As they got closer to the hill, the amount of vacationers they saw started to diminish. As soon as they had reached the mouth of the cave, there was no one around but the two of them. Shaking off this strange realization, Zuko and Aang continued through the dark cave.

For a moment, neither bender was able to see anything. Zuko had lit a small fire in his hands in order to give the cave a little bit of light. The cave was very small, but the ceiling was extremely high, making the cave seem bigger and more amazing than it actually was. From what Zuko could tell, Katara wasn't inside. Even though the small light that his flame provided wasn't enough to light the entire cave, he was pretty sure that it was quiet enough to tell if another person was inside. The only noises he heard were the crackling of the fire, Aang's breathing, and his own breathing. Zuko sighed.

"It doesn't look like she's in here," he concluded.

Aang scowled as he strained to see into the dark corners of the cave. Then his eyes widened a bit. "Wait a minute. Come in closer, I think I see something."

Zuko complied and walked deeper into the cave, letting the orange glow of his fire light the way. Then, right at his feet, Zuko looked down and saw a large pool of clear, beautiful water. It was different than the murky ocean water that was crashing in waves against the beach outside. It looked cleaner and purer. The two fire benders got down on their knees and stared into the pool of water that seemed to be even deeper than the ocean itself. Aang tilted his head in confusion as he spoke again.

"This is strange. Who would have thought that there would be something like this near the ocean? It doesn't even seem real."

Zuko nodded in agreement. Then he grabbed Aang's arm and pushed him to look at the pool of water. "Look," he said suddenly. "Do you see what's in the water?"

Aang and Zuko both looked down, seeing their own reflections stare back at them. But soon, their reflections started fading and disappearing slowly. Instead of their own faces staring back at them, they were met with the image of a ship with sails drifting along the water. On the ship, there were strange looking people with weird attire, but that wasn't what drew their attention. There on the ship, next to an orange haired woman, was Katara.

"Look! It's Katara!" Aang exclaimed.

Zuko widened his eyes in shock. "You're right. But where on earth is she? Why is she on a ship with all of those strange people?"

Aang shrugged. "I don't know."

Zuko stood up and brushed off his clothes. "Go get Suki, Toph, and Sokka. They need to come and see this," Zuko instructed.

Aang nodded and returned two minutes later with the rest of the group behind him. Suki and Sokka looked around the cave in awe while Toph started straight ahead, taking in the shape and feel of the rock cave she was currently in. Sokka and Suki saw the pool of water in front of them and kneeled down to get a closer look. Toph kneeled down as well and poked Aang next to her.

"What's there? I can't see," she said.

"I-It's Katara," Sokka gasped. "She's on a ship with a bunch of weird people I've never seen before. How did she get there?"

Everyone was at a loss of words, unsure of exactly where Katara was and how she had gotten there. Suddenly, the image of Katara had faded and the water in front of them began to ripple. Shocked, everyone stepped back a few feet and watched the scene unfold before them. The pond then began to bubble slightly in the middle. Right in the middle of the pool, a bluish figure broke through the surface of the water, creating a large splashing sound as the water around it began to spill onto the cave floor. Everyone stepped back even more as they watched the large figure emerge. It was tall and reached the top of the ceiling cave. The figure as well as the pool it had just come out of emanated a strange, blue, glow. Then, the blue figure started taking the shape of a large dragon.

The group of friends held their breath as they looked up towards the tall and mysterious looking dragon. The said dragon had bowed its head and looked directly at the group of warriors.

"My name is Mizu. I'm the Dragon Spirit that resides in this oasis," he explained.

Stunned, but regained himself, Sokka decided to speak out towards the spirit. "Where's my sister, Katara?"

The spirit Mizu nodded his head. "I understand your anxiety about your friend. But I promise you that she is safe where she is. There is nothing to be worried about. She is completely unharmed."

A sigh of relief could be heard throughout the cave. But Zuko still wasn't satisfied. "Where is she? When is she coming back?"

Mizu shook his head. "That I cannot say. I also cannot tell you why she is there. But I have to urge you all to focus on another matter that is far more important. You all still have to defeat the Fire Lord and restore peace to your world. Your friend will be perfectly safe, but I insist that you all continue with your journey. After you complete your tasks, I will wait here for your return to let you know how your friend is doing."

With that, the glow that appeared around the Dragon spirit faded and it became another incoherent figure again. With that, the figure lowered back into the pool of water, leaving the rest of the group of teenagers gaping at the news that they were just given. Aang shook his head in order to rid himself of the shock that had come over him. He turned and faced the rest of the group.

"Well… at least we know that she's safe," Aang said. "I think it'd be best if we did what the spirit said. It doesn't look like we can get Katara back at the moment. We should just focus on our goal right now," he finished.

Zuko nodded. "Aang's right. Let's just focus on defeating my father. We'll figure out a way to get Katara back soon."

So, with their hearts still heavy with worry, they exited the cave and continued on with their mission to stop the Fire Lord.

* * *

'_I am sorry, young ones. But making her absent was the only choice.' _Mizu said solemnly in the oasis as they left.

* * *

(End Chapter 5)

I wrote that last sentence. Hur hur.

But really, thank you pretty in green for helping me out! I really appreciated it! ^_^

And also, another big thanks to silverstar94 for beta-ing this chapter! You rock, girl! :D

Well, I hope this chapter was good! If it is, click on the 'Review this Chapter' button, and tell me what you think! Thank you! :D


	6. Deceitful Welcome

Hey guys! Next chapter is here! Now, all of you were wondering when Katara was going to use her bending. Fear not, I haven't forgotten about that! She will do a little bending here, but it's kinda minor. But don't worry; the next chapter will have lots of bending. Now, onto the Whiskey Peak arc! :D

Now, sit back, and enjoy! :)

* * *

Snow…

It was snowing.

The reason this baffled Katara was because five minutes ago, it was sunny.

Now… it was _snowing_!

'_What is _this_...?' _Katara thought in confusion.

Five minutes earlier, after Luffy, Usopp and Sanji's quarrel ended – resulting in both Luffy and Usopp having bumps on their heads – Katara went to the kitchen with Nami to see how the mysterious criminals, Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday, were doing. After a while, Katara noticed the window and looked through to see a bizarre sight. Snowflakes were gracefully dropping down, covering the Going Merry. Astounded - as was Nami when she came to take a look - they went outside to see if what they were seeing is true.

'_I guess what Crocus said about the weather conditions on this Grand Line were true...' _Katara thought.

As snow was falling, so did the temperature, so Nami and Katara got some more appropriate clothing for the chilling weather. Katara now wore an ordinary long blue coat, blue mittens and a pair fur boots which she has. Nami was wearing the same attire, except hers was a lime green long coat.

Luffy and Usopp on the other hand, were thrilled that they had snow. They clowned around, throwing snowballs and making snow sculptures. Sanji was told by Nami to shovel the snow off of the ship, which he gladly complied. Zoro… was still sleeping.

Katara was outside looking at all the falling snowflakes. The ship was indeed almost covered in snow. She gave out a small smile as the snow reminded her a little bit about her home back at the South Pole. She shook her head, trying not to have thoughts home in her mind. _'I can't get so wrapped up on going home right now. I have to trust these people on where they go.' _

"Hey, Katara! Look at what I made! It's Mr. Snow-Barrel!" shouted Luffy.

Katara looked down to the middle deck and saw that Luffy had made a funny snowman, equipped with a cape and a barrel on top of its head. She couldn't help but giggle and smile.

"Ha! You amateur! You call that pitiful blob a snowman?" Usopp said tauntingly. "Behold! I present to you all, the Snow Queen!" He presented a beautifully detailed snow sculpture of a woman in a sitting pose, wrapped in warm clothing.

"Wow, Usopp! That's fantastic!" Katara exclaimed, amazed by how wonderfully detailed it was.

Luffy pouted, "Yeah, I suppose it's nice..." he then smiled and added, "but can it do this?" With force, he pushed the arm stick out of the snowman, shooting it towards Usopp's snow sculpture and taking out the head. It took a second for Usopp to realize that his snow sculpture was ruined.

"GAAAH! WHAT THE HECK DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!" Usopp kicked Luffy's snowman out of pure rage.

"HEY! YOU BIG BULLY!" Luffy scooped up snow, formed it into a snowball, and threw it at his face, making it a direct hit.

"Ack! Why YOOOU!"

Katara blinked dumbly at Luffy and Usopp's snow feud. Then she started giggling, which got the attention of the two boys.

"Huh?" they said.

Then Katara's giggling turned into laughter.

"Hey, what's so funny?" Luffy asked innocently.

Katara tried to speak in between laughs. "I'm sorry, it's-it's just- ha-ha! You and Usopp! It-it just made me laugh w-when-" At that moment, she couldn't control her laughter any longer.

Luffy and Usopp looked at each other with confused looks. "Um, Katara?" Usopp said to her curiously.

She walked down the steps to the middle deck, her laughter dying down. "I'm sorry," She giggled. "It's just that you guys seem to be really good friends."

Usopp and Luffy blinked and looked each other. They both grinned and draped their arms around each other's shoulders.

"Yeah, well, we have our feuds once in a while, but I guess you can say we're pals," Usopp said with a big smile.

Katara gave a smile herself. She then looked at all the snow surrounding them. Her smile then turned into a sly one.

"Hey guys! Watch this." She then used her bending to conjure up some snow and formed it into what looked like a snow sculpture of Appa.

"WHOA! That's so COOL!" Luffy yelled with stars in his eyes.

"WOW! You can also control snow?" Usopp's eyes wide as saucers.

Katara giggled. "Well of course! It is made of frozen water after all!"

"Oh! So… you can control any water based substance, huh?" Usopp said, hearing this for the first time. "Interesting." he said putting a hand to his chin.

"Hey Katara, whatcha made here?" questioned Luffy, looking at the snow sculpture in wonder.

"Well, this is actually an animal from my world. It's a Sky Bison!"

"A Sky Bison? You mean to tell me that this animal with six legs is a bison?" Usopp looked at it weirdly.

"Um… yeah?" said Katara, not too sure how to answer that one.

"So when you say 'sky' bison… it can fly, right?" Luffy said, sounding like he solved a puzzle.

"Of course!" Katara said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Oooh! Awesome!"

"Wait a minute! How can a bison fly?" queried Usopp, a little sceptic.

"Well, by Airbending of course!" she said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. But she then remembered that they don't know anything about her world, as Luffy and Usopp were looking at her strangely. "Oh! Um... hehe, sorry. Um, you see, Sky Bison fly using Airbending, and Airbending is kind of like what I do, except the element is air. You see, there are four different kinds of bending; Water, Earth, Fire and Air. Each person can control only one of these elements, and they are called benders. The Sky Bison are the first Airbenders, and as other chosen animals, like the Badgermole, are the first benders of their natural elements."

Usopp was still a little confused by how a bison can fly, and what a Badgermole is, but he decided to let that slide, seeing as the girl was from another world. Plus, it was interesting hearing what benders are. Luffy just looked excited from learning all the info he heard.

"Wow! Neat! Does it have a name?" Luffy asked.

Katara nodded. "His name is Appa. He belongs to my friend who's an Airbender." Katara's eyes widen at the mention of her friend, and her face turned crest-fallen. _'Aang... I wonder how he's doing without me...'_

Luffy looked confused at her reaction, whilst Usopp looked concerned and asked, "Hey, are you alright?"

Katara snapped out of her sadden state. "Oh, um….sorry, it's just that-"

Suddenly, a scream was heard. It sounded like Nami. Everyone turned their gaze towards the kitchen as Nami came out the room looking startled.

"Nami-san, what's wrong!" Sanji said as he stopped shovelling snow.

"Turn the ship around 180 degrees! Now!" Nami commanded, with a panicked look on her face.

"Huh? A hundred and eighty degrees? Why are we turning back?" Usopp queried.

"Did you forget something?" Luffy asked.

"Nami, what's going on?" asked a worried Katara.

"The ship somehow got turned around! We're going back the way we came!" Nami said.

"WHAT!" yelled one else, shocked.

"I only took my eyes off the Log Pose for a second! And the sea was so calm…"

"The sea is having its way with us, you know." Said Mr. 9.

"You're not a very good navigator, are you?" added Miss Wednesday, who was back at the end of the room with Mr. 9, sitting at the kitchen table, blankets covering them. Nami angrily scowled at her.

"You cannot trust anything here on the Grand Line. The winds, the sky, the waves, even the clouds! Nothing's as it seems here on this sea. The only thing you can rely on around here is the direction of the Log Pose. Everyone knows that," said Miss Wednesday in an annoying 'know-it-all' way.

"OH, SHUT YOUR CONDESCENDING TRAP AND GET YOU AND YOUR STUPID PARTNER TO HELP US OUT HERE!" Nami screamed with a raging tone that petrified both of them to the bone. They got up and dashed out of the room.

Nami leaned against the railing, calling out orders. "Everyone! We'll take the wind from the starboard yard brace! Turn the ship 180 degrees to port! Usopp, watch the astern! Sanji, you'll take the whipstaff!"

"Right!" Usopp said, dashing to the back.

"Leave it to me!" declared Sanji.

Katara meanwhile, just stood in worry, not knowing what to do. She'd never been on a ship that's about to face danger before. She spoke up in a slightly nervous tone. "U-uh, I can try bending the ocean water on where we need to go!"

Nami looked down at Katara as her face had a look of shocked realization. '_Wait a minute….' _"That's it! Katara, if you can, go to the front deck and try Waterbending the water and steer the ship 180 degrees!"

"Um, o-okay, I'll try." Katara said as she hastily went to the front deck. She hurriedly went into a Waterbending stance and pulled the water to the left side of the ship. But before long, the sky was starting to clear up.

"Hold on a second! The winds have changed!" said Usopp.

"What!" Nami said in shock.

Katara looked over her surroundings and notice the change in weather. She was wide-eyed in puzzlement to say at the least. "What in the...?"

Luffy meanwhile saw a dolphin and wanted to go follow it. Nami hastily told him to be quiet.

And soon they faced many unnatural weather conditions. From increasing waves – the problem which Katara tried to handle with every chance she got – to a fog and an iceberg, to scrapping the iceberg – thus making a scratch on the bottom of the ship resulting in water leaking in – to a storm coming towards the ship; through all this, the Straw Hats, Katara, and the two mystery people have been working like crazy keeping the Going Merry intact and on course. Well, except for Zoro, who unbelievably enough, was still asleep during the ordeal.

* * *

The sea was now calm and sunny.

And Katara was exhausted. With having to control the waves that were sloshing around and trying to control the water to steer the ship, she felt like the energy had been sucked right out of her. She sat in a tired heap and leaned against the side rail on the front deck, her coat abandoned. She took exhausted breaths, shielding her eyes from the sun with her arm.

"That was insane..." she said to herself quietly.

The rest of the crew was worn out as well. They all practically laid on the deck floor in exhaustion. She didn't blame them.

As she lowered her arm, she found herself face to face with Luffy, who was leaning forward at her. Startled, she blinked.

"Hey Katara, you alright?" Luffy said with a smile on his face. Katara stared perplexed at Luffy. He didn't seem at all tired. He couldn't still be energetic after all of that?

She also couldn't help but draw her attention to the little scar area underneath his left eye. It was kind of weird thinking about it now, but Luffy kind of almost looked like Zuko, if just a tiny bit. Maybe it's the scar that was on the left side of his face, or the messy mop of raven black hair, but he did look just a little – keyword; _a little _– like the prince. Luffy's attitude, however, almost resembles that of Aang, a playful and carefree spirit. She doesn't know why she was thinking this now, but she just is. Maybe it just kind of dawned on her, she supposed.

"Eh… Katara? Do I have something on my face?" Luffy said in a curious tone, frowning.

Katara blushed in embarrassment for staring. "Oh! Sorry, I…" she faltered. She actually couldn't think of a good reason why she _was_ staring. Except that she could say he reminded her of one – actually, two – of her friends. But she didn't have to worry about it any further when she heard another voice that seemed to be yawning.

"Man, I'm well rested." It was Zoro, who finally woke up from his nap. He gazed around the ship to find Usopp, Nami, and Sanji collapsed on the deck floor.

"Oh come on! I know it's a nice day, but that's no reason to be so lazy. We got to make sure we're on the right course, ya know." Zoro said.

'_Shut up, you bastard!" _thought all three of them.

"Hey Zoro!" Luffy said as he went to lean on the railing, overlooking to the middle deck. Katara followed him and leaned on the rails as well.

Zoro looked up. "Hey." he replied. He gazed at Katara in confusion. "Hey, it's that girl. What's she doing here on the ship?"

Katara looked at Zoro in perplexity. He didn't know she was on the ship until now? But didn't they talk…? Luffy answered for him. "Katara is on the ship to find her way back to her home world!"

"Her home world?" Zoro said with a raised eyebrow, obviously missing something here. He gazed at Katara with a plain stare. Then he shrugged. "Alright. Welcome aboard," he said nonchalantly.

"Wait! I thought you already knew I was on the ship! You were resting while I was talking to Usopp!" Katara explained.

Zoro looked back at her oddly. "Oh, that was you? Sorry, I was a little out of it."

Katara blinked dumbly. _'Okay... not particularly one of the brightest ones.' _

Zoro looked down to see Miss Wednesday and Mr. 9 also collapsed on the floor as well. "What are you guys doing here?"

'_What the…! Are you serious!' _Katara looked at Zoro in disbelief.

"You fool!" said an irritated Mr. 9.

"We're on a side mission to take these guys back to their home! The town we're heading is called Whiskey Peak!" Luffy informed Zoro.

Zoro raised an eyebrow. "Since when do we become a transport service for thugs? We don't owe them anything."

Katara found that statement to be true. Why _are_ they actually helping them to get back to their home? Katara wasn't going to forgive them for blasting Laboon and Crocus, and all they ever did on the ship was complain. Why should they help them?

Katara sighed quietly to herself. _'Because no matter how despicable the person may be, you need to give them _some_ mercy and forgiveness,' _she thought. Although she didn't forgive Yon Rha for killing her mother, she had let him live, even though she didn't think he deserved it.

Luffy grinned. "Nope, we sure don't."

Zoro just gave out a groan. "Never mind. Why did I even ask?" Zoro then lowered his attention to the two weirdly dressed people in front of him and sat down to their eye level. Zoro gave out a smirk. "So, tell me, what were your strange names again? Because I don't think you two can be trusted."

Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday sat there nervously and fearfully, stiff as boards from the interrogation the intimidating Zoro was giving them.

"W-well, m-my name is Mr. 9…"

"A-and my name is Miss W-Wednesday…"

Zoro was still smirking. "Hmm... those are certainly strange names indeed. And for some reason, it would seem I've heard of those names somewhere before…"

Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday yelped in uneasiness.

Katara looked on at the interrogation in wonder. They do have really weird names, and they didn't bother to reveal their first names. What's up with that? Katara then noticed Nami was up and walked over behind Zoro with clenched fists.

Zoro still smirked. "…Or maybe I haven't-"

**BONK!**

"AUGH!" Zoro yelled in pain from being struck to the head. He looked up to see Nami clenching an angry fist at him.

Katara widened her eyes in surprise. She turned her head to Luffy and asked, "does she always do that?"

Luffy turned his head to her with laugh. "Yep! 'Fraid so!"

'_Yikes! Remind me not to be on her bad side.' _Katara turned her head back at the scenario.

Nami glowered at Zoro. "You jerk! You think you can sleep through everything while we do all the WORK!"

Zoro turned his head slowly towards Nami with a confused look on his face. "Wha?"

**BONK! BONK! BONK! BONKEDY-BONK! BONK!**

Zoro was now in even more pain, clutching onto his bruised head, with his eyes bulging out.

Katara eyes went wide again in terrorized awe. _'Okay... a definite reminder not to _ever _get on this girl's bad side.'_

"Okay people, listen up!" yelled Nami. "We got to stay alert! There's no way to know what's going to happen next! From the terror we just witnessed a while ago, I now know how the Grand Line got its dangerous reputation! And it looks like my navigational skills are useless here, anything could happen! But mark my words, I WILL guide us through!"

Even though she can act scary at times, Katara couldn't help but smile at Nami's determination.

"Um... okay... you sure about that, Nami?" Usopp questioned, sitting up from his position.

"Of course! We'll all be fine, just you see! Besides, it looks like we're already arrived at our destination!" Nami said with a smile as she pointed forward.

Katara looked behind her to see an outline of an island in the surroundings of a fog. Katara's mouth dropped at the oddity of the island. The island formation appeared different and foreign, as there are mountains that resemble what looked like to be giant cactuses.

Strangely, but understandably enough, the cactus like mountains reminded her of her brother.

'_Sokka would have a field day if he ever came to this place,' _thought Katara humorously to herself, thinking about the amount of cactus juice he would consume out of these mountains.

"There it is. Our first journey on the Grand Line comes to an end!" Nami said vigorously.

"Wow! Look at that island!" Luffy said excitedly, now sitting on the figurehead to get a better view.

"So this is Whiskey Peak, huh? The landscape is unlike anything I've ever seen!" commented Sanji.

"Man, those cactuses are humongous!" Usopp said.

Just then, Miss Wednesday and Mr. 9 hopped on the rails of the ship, gaining the Straw Hats' attention.

"Well, this has been fun, but I think now we'll take our leave," said Mr. 9 with a smirk.

"Thanks for the ride! It's been very interesting to say in the least." Miss Wednesday said, also with a smirk.

"We'll meet again someday," added Mr. 9.

And at the same time they both called out, "Bye-bye, baby!" and jumped off the ship into the ocean, swimming to the shore.

Everyone blinked.

Katara broke the silence by saying, "O… kay."

"Huh, well that was a quick exit," Nami said in bafflement.

"I guess we'll never learn what those two nutjobs were up to," Usopp said.

Katara, on the other hand, couldn't care less. Even though they did help them through that wild struggle, she was glad they were gone. The less she sees them, the better.

"Aw, who cares? We're nearing the island!" Luffy grinned with excitement in his eyes.

Looking onward, Katara noticed there was a river flowing up through the island ahead. "Look! A waterway! We can probably use it to get to the shoreline."

Nami looked in the direction Katara mentioned. "Hey, yeah! It looks like we can go inland by ship!" she smiled.

Usopp then thought of something. "Wait! T-this is an island of the Grand Line! T-there could be monsters and s-stuff!" he stuttered, trembling a bit.

"Well, like you said, this IS the Grand Line, so it is a possibility," said a nonchalant Sanji.

Katara looked at them with shock and horror in her eyes. "M-monsters?" She didn't like the sound of that. She may not know what kinds of creatures exist in this world, but she hoped she doesn't come across anything vicious anytime soon.

And just like that, Sanji went into semi-love-cook mode after hearing Katara's uneasy question. "Don't worry, Katara-Darling! I'll make sure you and Nami-swan are safe and protected from any beastly monsters!"

Katara blinked and smiled nervously. "Uh… thanks Sanji…" She didn't actually feel better hearing that, since she didn't know what Sanji's fighting skills were or what he was capable of, but she guessed she could trust him on that.

"Hey, relax Katara! If there are monsters on the island we can just turn back and leave!" Luffy said simply.

"That not true!" The gang turned to Nami. "We can't just turn back! According to what Crocus said, it's imperative that we stay here on this island so that the Log Pose can record the magnetic fields on that island before we can move on to the next! The time it takes to 'log' on each island varies. Some islands may only take a few hours, some even several days!"

Usopp was flabbergasted. "W-WHA! You mean to say that even if this island is crawling with monsters, we have to stay here ANYWAYS! FOR DAYS!" he cried, panicking.

Nami nodded. "That's right."

Katara felt just a little _more_ uneasy after hearing that information.

"Well, let's not think about the monsters until we have too! They're not even there!" Luffy said optimistically.

Katara gazed at Luffy and smiled a warm smile. She liked how childishly optimistic Luffy was acting, not thinking a second thought about the situation. It actually made her feel a little better.

"As strange as it may seem," said Zoro. "I agree with Luffy. It's better not to worry yet."

"Alright, now that that's settled, let's get going on! I'll be sure to protect you both, Nami-san and Katara!" Sanji said with a grin.

Usopp however, started to grab his throat and talk in a raspy voice. "I don't think I can go on with this cold. It's a rare condition, really. It's the 'don't go to that island!' disease. Have you heard of it?" he said, glancing at everyone.

Katara just looked at Usopp oddly.

"Alright everyone, get ready! And make sure to be prepared to run as well as fight." Nami advised.

The ship sailed through the river, about to approach the island's shore. Katara took the moment to physically prepare herself and went to a stance, ready to command the water around the ship and ready for anything that will come out. This may be a different world, but she'll take on anything, whether it's a monster, or something vicious of any nature.

Luffy looked back at Katara with an odd look. He saw the stance Katara was in and decided to ask, "Hey, are you about to do some of those cool water tricks?"

Katara turned her head to the right to gaze at Luffy. "Well…" she shifted her eyes downward a little bit. "If we encounter something dangerous, then… I suppose so..." she clarified, hoping they wouldn't find anything of the sort. She didn't know what they might be up against.

"Alright!" Luffy smiled. "That means we get to see how well you fight!"

Katara's eyes quickly shifted to her left and she blushed a tad.

The ship was still sailing towards the shore fog whilst the crew prepared themselves. Zoro had his hand on one of his swords, which made Katara wonder why he had three of them by his side. It was very curious looking. Sanji, looking poised, was ready for anything. Again, she didn't know what Sanji's fighting was capable of, but he sure looked confident about it.

Usopp… had a slingshot … She was dumbfounded to say in the least. How a slingshot could protect the crew was beyond her. Usopp was even shaking in slight fear whilst holding it, while silently praying to himself, 'Don't let us die, don't let us die, please don't let us die!' But hearing about the Kuro incident, she thought he can probably handle himself. Nami, she wasn't too sure of. She may give out commands, but can she fight? Too late to ask now…

Luffy was just casually sitting on the figurehead, actually anticipating for this supposed surprise attack on this island. It really baffled Katara on how Luffy can be so nonchalant and excited over something that could very well be an approaching battle.

Katara needed to focus though. She has to protect these newfound friends of hers that brought her in. She wouldn't fail them or let anyone down. She would protect these people in return for their kindness and generosity for helping her to find a way back home.

Luffy gazed over to his left. "Hey! I see something over there!" he said as he pointed.

There were people silhouetted in the fog on either side of the shore, surrounding them.

"Who are they…?" said a curious Sanji.

Usopp gulped and readied his slingshot. "Well, I may have to fight monsters, but at least I came prepared!" he quivered.

"Everyone; get ready," Nami informed.

Katara readied herself. This could be a big battle. She'll finally know what kind of creatures exists around here.

They were about to reach the shore…

Wait. She heard something. It almost sounded like...

Cheering?

The fog was clearing and now they could see crowds standing at the shores. Katara blinked in confusion. They're… cheering?

"Woohoo! Welcome to Whiskey Peak!" shouted an excited local.

"Hey pirates! Welcome to our island!" shouted another.

"Welcome to the town of celebration!"

This caught the crew off guard, especially Katara.

'_They're... glad we're here?' _thought Katara. _'But... this is a pirate ship! Shouldn't they warn the people or fight back or something?'_

Luffy smiled at the welcoming committee and said, "Cool! They're not monsters! They're just friendly people!"

"They're… welcoming us?" Nami said in a confused tone.

The cheers kept coming, and the crew started to relax a little from the welcoming. Sanji spotted some cute girls and was overjoyed, whilst Usopp was simply enjoying all the praise the people were giving them.

Soon, they docked at the shore, getting out of the ship one by one. Katara was, to say at least, surprised by the island's hospitable welcome. But she was surprised even more when she encountered a figure in the town.

They came across a man who, at the very least, dressed a little dignified. He was wearing a green unbuttoned shirt, revealing another white shirt that was buttoned up, He was also wearing green pants, knee high socks, and fancy shoes. But the thing that stuck out the most about him was his hair. His hair was all curled up into three giant curls on each side of his head, making him look somewhat royal looking. He also was carrying a weird looking object (to her) that looked like an instrument.

Katara couldn't help but stare at him and his bizarre appearance. He looked so… _foreign _to her. _'Different world, Katara, different world...' _she reminded herself.

The man with the curly hair spoke. "Welco-" he stopped to clear his throat. "Ahem! Mi mi mi mi miiii~! Welcome to our island, adventurous pirates! My name is Igarappoi, the mayor of this town! I would expect our welcoming was a bit of a surprise to you all, but as you can see, we here in Whiskey Peak pride ourselves in our hospitality, as well as our ale! We're an ale brewing town, as we have practically an ocean of it!

"Since all of you have come to our island, we would love to hear about your adventures!" said Igarappoi with a smile. "Would you be so kind to join- Ahem! Mi mi miiii~! To join us for a celebration in your honour?"

"WOULD WE! YOU BET!" Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji exclaimed excitedly at the invitation.

Katara felt cautious with this sudden invite. She didn't know what to think about this generous welcome they gave them. It seemed a little too… well, sudden. She looked over to Nami and Zoro, in which Nami had an annoyed expression, while Zoro just had a blank scowl look on his face. She whispered over to Nami saying, "Do you think we should?"

Nami blinked away from her thoughts and glanced at Katara and said quietly, "Well, knowing those idiots, we're going to be dragged there anyways. I really need to ask when the Log Pose will be set here, though."

Nami went to Igarappoi and said, "Say, do you know how long it is for the Log Pose to 'log' on this island?"

Igarappoi gave Nami a confused look. "Log Pose? Dear lady, set aside such trivial matters! Rest from your travels!" He grasped a hand on Nami's shoulder and guided her. "All right, everyone! Prepare the festivities! Let us pay tribute for these adventurers!"

"Huh! Hey! But-" she protested, but wasn't heard as the crowd cheered again and were directed into one of the buildings.

Katara looked at Zoro, who still had that peculiar scowl on his face. He almost looked like he was thinking…

Her attention was averted away when a local said to her, "Hey! Come on, little miss! Join us for the party!"

"Um... well… wha- HEY!" Katara didn't finish what she had to say as she was being pushed to the welcoming party.

Zoro just walked in the direction where the festivities were, thinking, '_Something about this seems completely off… Ah well, at least they have booze here.'_

* * *

The party was a wild one to say in the least. Katara could see all the activity going on around her from where she was sitting, especially in front of her right now, with Zoro having a drinking contest with the locals, as was Nami who sat at another table. It seemed her other crewmate friends were drinking as well, having a good time also. Usopp was telling some stories that she didn't think were true, as they sound too unbelievable to have happened, Sanji was sitting at a table surrounded by beautiful women and having the time of his life, and Luffy was eating an insane amount of food that… made his whole body morph into a huge round fat thing… Katara was horrified and worried for Luffy, wanting to go over there and do something to make him stop eating, but one of the local guys sat next to her. "What seems to be the problem, young lady? You're not having a good time?" he asked in a loud but cheerful tone, trying to out-yell the noise.

Katara just looked unsure. She felt like an outcast in this party and she didn't know how to behave in these types of shindigs. Especially when there was alcohol involved, and she was sure that 'ale' was sort of an alcohol drink from the way people were acting whilst drinking it.

She replied to the man, "Well, I... don't really know what to do."

The man laughed broadly and said, "Don't know what to do! It's a party! Feel a little loose, young lady! Join the festivities! Here!" he grabbed a mug full of ale. "Have one! Drink up!"

Katara looked at the mug with shock and uneasiness. "Y-you want me to drink that!" she pointed at the drink.

"Sure! How old are ya, little lady? Fifteen, sixteen, probably seventeen?"

"U-um, actually, fourteen. But I'll be fifteen soon this year…" She didn't know why she said that part.

"Fourteen!" the man said in surprise. "Well good gracious, you certainly look a little older than fourteen!"

"Uh… thank you?" she said blushing.

The man laughed some more, giving the mug to Katara. "Well hey, since you said you'll be a year older soon, I think it would be a good time to try some adult drinks! Come on, what d'ya say!"

"W-wha-uh-" she stuttered as she looked at the alcoholic drink and pondered a bit.

She never had any alcohol before. Never. She was too young to drink any, and she was fine with that. She wanted to be a good girl. Besides, it would have killed Sokka if he saw her baby sister drinking booze. She wasn't going to stoop low to drink this 'ale' just so she can have a good time enjoying herself. But... she _really_ didn't know what to do in this party. Her crewmates were doing their own crazy things, except for her. Plus, she doesn't want to be a rude guest. She probably could find something to do… maybe.

She looked at the mug filled with the frothy liquid. She did wonder though... what did alcohol taste like? She was wondering, mind you, she wasn't about to find out by drinking it.

"Aww, what's the matter? You still don't wanna try it? Come on, little missy, how about we cheer ya on! What do ya say, fellas!" He yelled to the other happy drinkers sitting around the table, who all yelled loudly in approval.

Katara went wide-eyed. "Uh, n-no, I-I'm perfectly fi-"

"Come on, little lady! Drink up!"

"Yeah! One drink isn't gonna kill ya!"

"Exactly! It won't hurt just to sip a little!"

They all started to root for her to drink up, adding more pressure to Katara.

Well… perfect. Now she had people cheering her on to drink. What in the world can she do now? She didn't want to hurt their feelings, did she? Even though she's underage to drink, they were really just trying to be hospitable.

She looked at the mug filled with ale again, whilst hearing the men cheer her on.

Can she really do it? Can she break all the rules here and...? Wait a minute! One of them said she can take a sip! So… it wouldn't hurt just to take one tiny sip of it, right? She can just do that, _and_ compliment on the ale that they made – even though she didn't know if it would taste good or not – and she could be on her way! Once thinking about it, she didn't _have_ to attend this party. She can just go outside and practice her Waterbending, while her friends can do their own wild and crazy antics at the party.

There. Crisis averted, problem solved.

Now she just has to have the guts to try to drink it.

"I guess I'll take a sip…"

The group of men cheered loudly.

"That's the spirit!" said the man who was sitting next to her.

She once again looked down at the drink. _'Well, here goes nothing...' _She raised the mug to her mouth slightly, sniffed the liquid – it smelled a little funky – and hesitantly, but boldly sipped a good portion of the drink.

It tasted... watery... and a little grainy. (1)

'_Hm... It's not bad. A little different for my tastes, but not bad…'_

"So what do you think!" one of the men hollered over the loud merriment in the party.

"It's pretty good!" Katara said with a slight smile.

"Haha! She likes it, boys!" the man next to Katara said. They all cheered broadly.

Katara blushed and looked down at her drink. She licked her lips. Come to think of it, she was pretty thirsty. After all that water she bended during that storm, she was pretty exhausted, and tasting sea water while it splashed on your face wasn't exactly quenching. She didn't know if it was the ale talking, but… she wanted to have another drink. But... would that be wrong? It did taste alright, but this is alcohol! She shouldn't be drinking this! ...Right?

"Hey, um... can I ask a question?" Katara asked the man sitting next to her.

"Sure you can! What is it?"

"It... wouldn't hurt me to drink just one…" she glanced at the mug. "…um, glass, would it?"

The man laughed heartily. "Why, no! You thinking of drinking the whole thing?"

Katara contemplated on that. She _really_ was thirsty… but she didn't want to become an alcoholic.

…Oh, for goodness sake! It's just one drink! She heard before that having one drink doesn't make you drunk. She was THIRSTY, for crying out loud!

"I think I might." Katara said confidently.

The men stared at her for a second… and roared a cheer.

"Well, go ahead then! Drink up!"

Katara nodded with a smile, and drank the whole liquid, gulping it all down whilst all the men rooted her on. (2)

Once she finished the mug though...

_**PLOP!**_

She passed out on the table.

The group of men blinked and looked at each other. They then gazed at the unconscious form of Katara.

They all cheered vigorously.

"Woo! You go, little lady! Hahaha!" hooted the man next to her.

* * *

Igarappoi laughed heartily. "My, this has certainly been- Ahem! Mi mi mi~! An enjoyable evening! I'm pleased you are all having a good time!" he yelled over to the Starw Hats, analyzing all the activity from afar.

Igarappoi then smirked with a cocky expression. "Indeed… I truly am…"

* * *

Katara stirred as her eyes opened lazily. She sat up, yawned and winced. Her head hurt a little. She looked around to see that the lights have been turn off, and all of the other party goers have left, except for her new friends, who all lay passed out as well.

She blinked. What happened? The first thing she remembered was that she was chugging down the ale, and then she passed out. She guessed that she drank it too fast and it made her head rush or something.

Huh. She might have some condition when it comes to alcohol. Well… either way, she guessed she deserved that. That's what she probably gets for trying alcohol so soon. Sokka would surely scold her if he witnessed what she did.

One thing's for sure though, she will definitely not drink anything that potent anytime soon.

She continued to look around the area to see if anybody was here. As she was looking, she noticed in front of her that one of her friends, Zoro, wasn't occupying the table anymore. She raised her eyebrows. _'Zoro? Where did he go?' _She got up from her booth seat and walked around the building to see where he might be and to check up on her crewmates.

Her friends were all out cold from the festivity, so she decided to let them rest as she thought they might need it. As she moved along, she couldn't find Zoro anywhere. She decided to go outside to see if he's out there – and try to at least do some Waterbending – until she spotted a person out the window. Or rather, _persons_…

Katara gasped and ducked out of view so they couldn't see her from the window.

It was Igarappoi… and Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday! And there seemed to be another person with them. It was… a very big and brawny woman wearing a red and white checked sundress. Katara blinked. Who was she?

She listened in as best as she could.

"…But seriously, was a celebration necessary for six scrawny kids?" said the brawny woman.

"Aw, Ms. Monday. Good of you to join us," said Igarappoi.

"Yeah, yeah. I still think we should have eliminated them when they've reached the port. We have a food shortage as it is, and no whale meat is coming this way."

"Hey, we tried our best!" exclaimed Miss Wednesday.

"Yeah! Cut us some slack!" said Mr. 9

"Calm down. Take a look at what I discovered. I did some checking up on them," said Igarappoi.

"What is it Mr. 8?" questioned Miss Wednesday.

Mr. 8? Ms. Monday? They have strange names like the other two. But wait… Miss Wednesday called Igarappoi 'Mr. 8'! Does that mean he's with these people?

'_What is going on?'_

"Look at this." Igarappoi, a.k.a Mr. 8, showed them a piece of paper. Whatever it was gave the others a reaction.

"What the-? Thirty million berries!" said all three of them with shocked looks on their faces.

"Yes. Only a fool judges a pirate by his appearance Miss- Ahem. Mi-mi~! Miss Monday."

"…I'm so ashamed." Miss Monday said with her hand to her head.

"That Straw-hat weirdo is worth thirty million berries!" Mr. 9 exclaimed.

Miss Wednesday stuttered, "T-Those guys are really pirates…"

Berries? What does that…? Katara's eyes widened in realization. Straw hat? That's Luffy! Wait a minute… are berries the currency on this world? And if it is… would that piece of paper be a wanted bounty on Luffy?

Thirty million… what would make Luffy get a high bounty like that?

"It doesn't matter. I've taken care of them. We can make a favourable report to the boss."

'_The boss? They're working for someone?'_

"Hey! What are you doing up!" said a quiet, but gruff voice.

Katara jumped in surprise and turned around to see two men carrying dangerous looking swords. They were two other men who were carrying guns inspecting the tables around them.

"One of them got away!" said one of the men carrying guns.

"Damn it!" cursed one of the sword wielding men.

The other swordsman looked at Katara and smirked. "You should've gone back to sleep, little girl."

Katara froze in place. _'Oh crap! What do I do?'_ She glanced from left to right, trying to find anything that's liquid around here. If she could just find some of that ale lying around...

But they quickly grabbed her wrists and dragged her outside.

"Hey! L-Let go! Stop!" Katara said as she struggled. She tried to scream to wake up one of her crewmates, but one of them covered her mouth. They open the door and hauled her out in the moonlight. All the agents looked over to see what the commotion was.

"It's that water witch!" said Mr. 9.

"Water witch?" frowned Miss Monday.

"Yes, that girl. She can manipulate water at her own will!" Miss Wednesday informed.

"What?" Mr. 8 questioned, his eyes widened in astonishment. "That girl can control water? That's impossible! Are you certain?"

"Absolutely! We experienced it! But I don't think she possess a Devil Fruit. I think I heard that she was born with that power!" Mr. 9 clarified.

"What!" Mr. 8 said, stunned. He looked and stared at Katara in wonderment.

"...Interesting." Mr. 8 turned to Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday. "You two should have told me this earlier."

"Well... we were going to." Miss Wednesday said sheepishly as Mr. 9 rubbed the back of his head in shame.

"No matter. If what you said is true, then this is big news, either way. If word like this gets out-"

"Excuse me to interrupt, but would you mind letting my friend go?" said a voice from above them.

"Huh?" they all said, even the four men. They all gazed up. While that happened, more of the people in the town came out of buildings, wielding weapons. Katara, mouth still covered, looked up as well to see a figure sitting crossed-leg on top the building that occupied her friends. Her eyes widened.

'_Zoro!'_

And there he was, Roronoa Zoro, sitting on top of said place, holding one of his swords up high, smirking.

"Oh, and _please_ don't wake any of my other friends up. They had a long voyage, and they desperately need the rest," he said, the smirk still evident on his face.

"You! But you were passed out!" shouted Mr. 8.

"Tch. A true swordsman never drinks himself into a stupor. Plus, I took a nap earlier," said Zoro. He stood up from his position. "And judging by the cheap disguises and scowls, I'm guessing you're all bounty hunters."

'_Bounty hunters?' _Katara thought in shock.

"And a den of bounty hunters can be a dangerous place," Zoro continued smirking. "Your specialty around here is tricking and robbing the drunken pirates who fall for your hospitality. Original, I'll give you that much." Zoro looks around the crowd. "I'm counting about a hundred of you scumbags, give or take."

'_A HUNDRED?' _Katara's eyes widened more.

"Doesn't matter. I'll take you all on. You hear me, Baroque Works?" said Zoro.

Mr. 8 and everyone else had expressions of pure surprise. "You know the name of our company! How!"

'_Baroque Works?' _she thought in confusion. She listened in on what Zoro had to say.

"When I was in your line of work, once upon a time, your company tried to entice me with a job offer. Naturally, I said no. Do the same rules still apply? Employee identities kept secret, cheesy code names, the boss's identity and whereabouts are kept a mystery to everyone?

"Baroque Works. The criminal organization who loyally obeys the boss's orders like herded sheep," Zoro said, still smirking. "Heh. That's some secret."

Silence could be heard from the crowd. The wind blew past them.

Mr. 8 then spoke in a grim tone. "This is quite unexpected. If you already know all of our secrets, then we have no choice… but to kill you."

Zoro frowned. Katara inwardly gasped.

Mr. 8 narrowed his eyes at Zoro. "Let there be another tombstone added on the cactus rocks tonight."

Katara just let all of it sunk in. She was helpless. She didn't know how to get out of this situation. She doesn't even know if Zoro will get out of this or not. She just looked on...helpless.

She prayed to the spirits, wherever they were, if they could even hear her here, to help them in this dire dilemma.

"KIIIILL HIIIIIM!" Mr. 8 yelled.

* * *

(End chapter 6)

1. I have NO idea how ale or beer is supposed to taste like. I'm just guessing. :P

2. I do not support underage drinking; just pointing that out there.

Whew! Finished! I hope this was good for you guys! I might need to take a break from this for a while, though. It's wearing me out. Actually, I need to focus on my other story, which is a Danny Phantom fic. But, don't worry! I'll switch to this story back and forth while I'm writing the other one.

And I hope I didn't let Katara easily give in to drinking the ale. I wanted her to be knocked out like the rest of the StrawHats.

So anyways, yeah...if you like, please review! :D

And once again, thanks to silverstar94 for beta-ing! :)


	7. Certain Turn Of Events

Hey guys and gals! :D

(All the readers glare at me.)

…Okay, look, I'm VERY, _VERY_ sorry it took so long to update this chapter, but I kinda get _really _distracted with my life and whatnot. Also I have my on and off days when I type a chapter, and I'm trying not to make my writing sound elementary. So, again, I apologize.

I also come to realize that this is going to be a big project, and I simply can't be focusing on writing this for the rest of my years, as I also have more fanfic ideas that I would like to work on, my own story ideas that I want to develop, and trying to get my life on track (don't ask, it's complicated. It involves me having OCD and other stuff.). So I am in need of some help on this.

But, fear not, for I have started collaboration with another author! Some of you may know him for all the crossover works he's done, and that person's name is Kasek! :D So while he's doing a chapter, I'll be working on my other fics as well as other stuff I intend to focus on. :)

Well, now that we got that out of the way, her it is; chapter seven. Expect a lot of action…and a little water bending. This will be the first time I do action scenes as well, so tell me if I at least tried. XP

And now, LET THE BATTLE BEGIN! :D

* * *

"KIIIILL HIIIIM!" yelled Mr. 8.

Katara looked on, mouth covered, and with fear in her eyes. _'Zoro!'_

But then…

**_WHISH_****!**

Zoro was gone.

Katara blinked. Mr. 8 and the others blinked. All the bounty hunters blinked.

Mr. 9 was the first to speak. "H-hey! He's gone!"

"Where did he go!" exclaimed Mr. 8.

Katara's eyes searched the area where he once was, until a voice called out…

"Hmm… now where _could_ I be?"

The bounty hunters and the agents turned abruptly with their eyes bulging out comically, to see none other than Zoro, standing in the middle of the crowd, putting his hand over his eyes, as if he too was trying to spot where he was.

Katara's eyes widen in shock. _'How in the... what...?'_

Zoro let his arm down, and had a smug grin on his face. "So… You all want to fight, huh?"

"Why _you_…! Don't take us for fools! SHOOT HIM!" yelled one of the bounty hunters.

The bounty hunters aimed their guns at Zoro and were about to shoot him, when just like that, he dashed away from the line of fire like the speed of sound, making the bullets hit the other shooters that were firing at Zoro. The man that was holding Katara got hit with a one of the bullets, right in the shoulder. He cried out in pain and let her go.

Katara, seeing that this was her chance, quickly dashed through the crowd of bounty hunters. Few tried to grab her, but she evaded them successfully.

"The girl! Don't let her get anywhere near water!" Mr. 9 shouted to the bounty hunters.

Katara silently cursed to herself, as she was planning on heading towards the open body of water at the docks. She quickly glanced up at the sky to see a half crescent moon. _'It's not much, but it'll do.' _She really hoped Yue could help her here in this world and in this dire situation.

"I'll get her!" said a hunter, readying his gun.

"I don't think you won't," said a voice behind him.

"Huh?" the bounty hunter turned around to see a smirking Zoro.

"It's Zoro! Get him!" one of the hunters yelled, as they aimed their guns at him.

"NO YOU FOOLS, FORGET HIM FOR NOW! _GET THE GIRL!_" Mr. 9 yelled to them frantically.

Katara was now near the docks, and with two raised hands and a quick twist from her body, she created a large water whip. All of the eyes of the bounty hunters and agents bugled out of their sockets, along with their jaws dropping as they marvelled at Katara's power.

"My… my word! She really _can _control water! You two were right!" Mr. 8 yelled in astonishment.

"_SEE?_ WE TOLD YOU!" Mr. 9 exclaimed.

Katara, with a swift swat of her arm, sent the water whip onto the bounty hunters, knocking them out their place. Some bounty hunters were out of harm's way, some ducked, and some weren't so lucky. Eyes wide, Zoro, who was in the crowd of bounty hunters, knowingly ducked just in time before the water whip came.

"Hey! You could have warned me, you know!" shouted Zoro.

Katara winced. "Um, sorry!"

Mr. 8's eyes narrowed. "So, this little girl can manipulate water, eh? Well, whatever you are, _girl_, I can guarantee you that this will be the last time you will manipulate anything!"

Katara saw that Mr. 8 had pulled out a weird instrument out of his coat. Not knowing what it will do but not taking any chances on finding out, she dashed towards him, pulling more water out from the docks. She was almost at reach when she realized that she neglected the bounty hunters that were starting to aim their pistols at her.

"GET HER!" yelled a hunter.

Katara gasped and then hurriedly wrapped the water around her, turning it into hard ice as it was engulfing her. The bounty hunters opened fire, but were too late, as some of the bullets bounced harmlessly off of the ice wall, while some were embedded into the ice.

"_WHAT? _What is this? She can create ice from water as well?" Mr. 8 said flabbergasted, holding onto his saxophone weapon. "Darn it! Somebody destroy that ice shield at once!"

"I'll do it," said Miss Monday, advancing towards the ice dome shield, while equipping some brass knuckles on each of her hands.

But then, with a mighty push, Katara sent the front side of the ice dome hurtling towards Miss Monday.

"AGH!" Miss Monday cried out, being smacked with the ice wall as she and the wall smashed painfully through the bounty hunters.

Mr. 8 and the rest of the agents managed to get out of the way, but as they recovered, they saw that Katara wasn't there anymore.

"The girl! Where is she!" cried Miss Wednesday.

"Hey! That Zoro guy's not around here either!" Mr. 9 exclaimed as he helped Miss Monday up.

Mr. 8 growled in frustration. "Blast it!" He narrowed his eyes. "It appears we'll have to be careful of them." He turned his attention to the agents and bounty hunters. "Listen up! We must not let them get away! That Zoro character and that girl know of our secret organization! If any of you find the swordsman, kill him at once! As for the girl…" he paused, as if actually thinking on what to say. "Let her live…for now. She has a very interesting power. Where she has gotten it, we don't know, but she may be a useful aspect to Baroque Works. If you find her, try to contain her as much as you can. Knock her out if you need to! Once you do, we'll take her to the boss and see what he has to say about her fate. Now go!"

The bounty hunters ran off into the town to find the swordsman and the waterbender.

Mr. 8 crossed his arms smugly and said, "They don't really think they can take us all on, do they?"

* * *

Zoro was running and carrying a dumbfounded Katara around the waist, escaping the mass of bounty hunters.

'_Wow. He's really fast!' _thought Katara as the wind blew her hair into her face.

They found a place to hide behind a house. Zoro put down Katara and put a finger to his lips, signalling her to be quiet. But of course, that didn't stop her from quietly saying "thanks" to him. She then decided to silently ask him of all times in their situation, "You were a bounty hunter once?"

Zoro's eyebrow twitched. She wasn't being quiet. "Yeah, I was in the hunting business once," he said quietly, hoping that that will make her silent.

It didn't. She also said, "Wow. What made you a pirate then?"

"Luffy made me into one. Now quiet!" he shushed her.

Katara decided to do just that. She'll ask him what he means by that some other time… _if_ there is one. Katara shook her head, reassuring herself inside. _'Don't be grim now. We can get out of this.'_

She looked over at Zoro and saw that he had three swords by his side. She blinked at this. She seen him with the swords before, and it made her wonder why he had only three. Two would have been reasonable, but _three_? That looks strange…

She was thinking of asking why he had three swords by his side, until he quietly spoke up.

"One thing that will make this a good night…" Zoro smirked, "is that I can try out two of these new swords. I can be sure to give them a good workout."

Katara looked at Zoro weirdly.

"AHA! THERE YOU ARE!" yelled a voice.

Zoro and Katara's eyes widened and they looked up to see a bounty hunter on top of the house, pointing his gun downwards.

"Damn!" Zoro cursed, quickly grabbing Katara by her waist and back slammed into the door of the house, entering it. The hunter let fire but he didn't get a clear good shot.

Katara yelped as they rolled inside. Zoro was about to stand, when he heard guns readying to fire.

"Huh?" he said, looking behind him. Katara also looked behind her and gasped, seeing more bounty hunters coming from the back door and windows and aiming their guns out at them.

"Try to shoot the swordsman, but whatever you do, don't hit the girl!" shouted one hunter.

'_Huh?' _wondered Katara. _'Why do they want me alive?' _

Zoro raised an eyebrow at this as well, but proceed to escape the line of fire while holding Katara – she felt like a rag doll at this point – by lunging towards a table and knocking the table to its side acting as a cover for the bullets. The hunters then opened fire, punching holes into the table with their bullets. Zoro put his back to the bottom table while holding onto Katara who was placed in front of him. Katara blushed at the intimacy that Zoro was giving her, such as her back to his well built chest, as well as his strong arms around her, trying to keep his frame to hide her from the bullets. Of course, this wasn't intended to be romantic, as Zoro was completely devoid of that, and was also completely oblivious on what he was doing.

'_Holy pig-cow!' _Katara thought, being held securely by Zoro.

Zoro quickly glanced at the right corner of the house and saw three barrels of ale nearby. He glanced back down at Katara, failing to notice her blushing, and thought of an idea to get them both out of this situation. Once they stop firing for a while, he quietly, and gruffly said, "Katara?"

Katara snapped out of her stupor and said, "U-um, yeah?"

"Can you bend the ale from those barrels?" He hated to see good brew go to waste, but getting out of here was better than crying over spilled alcohol.

"U-um… y-yeah, I can try," she said as she saw the barrels.

"Good; cause we're gonna have to make a break for it and you'll have to follow me while you defend yourself, so don't waste your ammo."

"W-wha!" Katara gaped.

One of the bounty hunters shouted, "Hey! Come on out and die like a man, Zoro!"

Zoro smirked and begun to unsheathed one of his swords. "Alright. Let's see what Yu-Bashiri can do…" He took one last glance at Katara. "Try to keep up with me."

'_Gee, thanks. That's all the reassurance I need,' _she thought bitterly, but nodded anyway.

Then in one swoop, Katara witnessed the swordsman's ability, as he sliced the table in half and went dashing out of the house with great speed through the hunters, giving them well deserved slices each.

"GAAAH!" the hunters screamed.

Zoro took a quick once-over at the sword and smirked. "Good sword. Nice and light."

Katara, still in the house, was in awe of what she just saw. She snapped out of it as she remembered that she needed to follow Zoro. So she used her bending to summon the ale in the barrels from the holes on top of it. She gathered all the ale she could muster, and formed it into a makeshift liquid orb. She then dashed out of the house, dragging the alcohol with her, and joining Zoro.

"Alright, let's get a move on," Zoro said as he took notice of her presence and turned to face her. As he did, he blinked dumbly at the amount of ale she was carrying.

Katara, who was moving her hands around to keep the liquid in place, saw his expression and said with a shy shrug, "Well, you didn't say how much."

"THERE THEY ARE!" yelled yet another bounty hunter.

Zoro glanced to see that a couple more bounty hunters were heading their way. "Let's go!" he said as he began to run.

Katara followed the swordsman while bending the ever shifting ball of ale. Zoro went to a stairway that connected to the second roof floor of a house nearby. He and Katara climbed the stairs, as the hunters were gaining on them. Katara was slowly back stepping onto the steps of the stairs while keeping her balance so she won't drop her source of attack.

As they drew closer, Katara gave them a good ale whip, knocking some out. While she kept going on with that, Zoro reached the top of the stairs, only to be greeted by a few men. One was carrying a bazooka, which he fired away, nearly colliding with the swordsman had he not had leaned backwards, grasping onto the stair rails. The cannonball missile went through a house and exploded, startling Katara, but not as much to still keep her ammunition of liquid intact.

'_Man, that was close,' _thought a relieved Zoro.

One of the hunters cackled. "You're finished, Zoro!" They charged at him.

Katara looked over to Zoro to see that he was grabbing on the rails, flat on his back on the steps. She gasped, and turned her attention to the hunters that were in front of her with an angry look. She bent the alcohol and threw it at the remaining hunters, freezing them in the progress.

"AAUUGGH!" screamed the unlucky frozen hunters that were in her range.

Just as she was about to join Zoro, there came a ferocious cry.

"**GRAAAAAH**!"

The hunters, Katara, and Zoro looked up to see Miss Monday, carrying above her a barrel full of ale. She then tossed the barrel in their direction.

Zoro, who recovered from the mishap, yelled "Duck!" to Katara. She did just that, and somehow, with a bunch of quick slashes, Zoro divided the barrel into four pieces, knocking each of the four hunters out.

"Darn it. Another waste of good brew," Zoro said bitterly.

Katara's eyes widen and her mouth dropped in shock as she got back up. Zoro just slashed a barrel into four pieces! How is that even possible!

A sudden yell snapped her out of her thoughts, as a big guy with a giant stone hammer was about to decimate Zoro.

Katara cried out. "Zoro! Look-"

But Zoro already knew what was coming, and had unsheathed his second sword, slicing the stone mallet in two, and slicing the big guy with his other sword.

"…out?" Katara said in astonishment, blinking.

Zoro didn't pay her any attention as he examined the second sword in front of him with shocked curiosity. "It sliced through that stone mallet!" he said, closely examining it more. "Kitetsu III has a great edge. But a legendary sword only cuts when its master wants it to." He narrowed his eyes. "This one's a problem child."

Katara looked at him peculiarly with a raised eyebrow. _'Wow... he must really be into swords.' _

"_RAAAH!_" cried a small voice loudly.

Katara looked over to the source and gasped. It was a little boy with a knife in his hand, charging and preparing to stab Zoro. Zoro once again, saw this coming, and knocked the knife out of the kid's hand.

"Eeek!" squeaked the boy. A woman in a nun's outfit came to the scene to grab the boy and hold him close to her.

"Oh please, have mercy on the child!" she said to Zoro. "Have mercy!"

Katara gazed over at Zoro nervously, who had a plain look on his face. _'He wouldn't... would he?' _

But before she could ponder any further, the nun pulled out a crucifix which had a hole in the centre of it.

"BLESS YOU!" the nun cackled, pulling a string on the crucifix. Out emitted a smoke that engulfed Zoro. Katara gasped and saw that the nun had grabbed a sword off the ground from one of the unconscious hunters, while the boy pulled out a gun.

"Zoro!" she yelled, turning to him, but froze as she once again was dumbstruck to find Zoro behind the nun and boy. The nun and boy stood there for a second until they collapsed on the ground.

Zoro, holding his two swords by his sides, said, "Use that sorry trick on someone with a kinder heart."

Katara was shocked and horrified by what she just saw. "How can you do that!" she said angrily.

Without looking at her, Zoro said, "Relax, I just hit them with the dull side of the blade. They'll be fine."

Katara blinked, her anger dropped as she glanced at the nun and child. No blood was pouring out of them. They just seem to be unconscious. "Oh… w-well, that was still a little drastic…" she said tentatively.

"Well, what would _you_ do then?" Zoro asked her straightforwardly with a little irritation in his tone, turning his head towards her.

Katara just stood there; mouth opened with a blank look on her face. Her eyes shift down and she muttered, "Um…"

"THEY'RE OVER ON THE ROOF!"

Zoro groaned, "They never give up, do they?" he turned towards Katara. "No time to wonder now, let's keep moving. Follow me!"

Katara snapped out of her thoughts and followed Zoro to the latter up. The bounty hunters were hot on their tail, climbing up the latter as Zoro and Katara were already up the roof.

Zoro looked down at the mob of bounty hunters and turned to Katara. "Hop on my back."

Katara, surprised and stunned, looked at Zoro like he was crazy. "What!"

"Hop on my back!" he said, more forcefully this time.

Katara, not questioning him any further, hopped on his back and wrapped her arms around his neck, while her legs were wrapped around his waist.

"Hold on!" Zoro instructed.

"What are you-" But Katara was interrupted as she saw some bounty hunters about to reach to the top of the roof. Zoro then knelt in front of the ladder and looked at the bounty hunter who was up first, giving him a smug look. The bounty hunter, confused, wondered why he was looking at him that way, until Zoro took the ladder by the top sides and shoved it forward, letting the bounty hunters fall off of it. Katara, confused and anxious herself, wondered where this was going. Zoro then took off in rush, causing Katara to yelp and hold on tight, as he planted his foot on the ladder's step. Katara, eyes wide, screamed.

Zoro cringed at her screeching, but amazingly enough, ignored it.

Zoro, with the ladder leaning and falling, jumped off of it and was about to land on another roof with more bounty hunters on it.

"AAAHHH! HE'S COMING THIS WAY! SHOOT HIM!" cried one of the hunters.

"No, you'll hit the girl!" shouted another.

But it was too late as Zoro landed on the roof and prepared an attack. "**HAWK**…**WAVE!**"

Zoro unleashed an attack that made him fast and swift, knocking out and cutting up the bounty hunters, making them yell out in pain. Katara was trying very hard not to let go of Zoro from his extreme moves.

'_Great Spirits alive! This is insane!' _thought an extremely nervous Katara.

On another building rooftop, even _more _bounty hunters jumped off of the building to pounce on Zoro. Katara, having to look up, was frightened and anxious. Zoro on the other hand, quickly traced a circle around the ground rooftop with his sword and casually walked out of their view. They landed on the roof intact, ready to attack Zoro.

"I wouldn't be standing there if I were you," Zoro nonchalantly said.

The bounty hunters gave out questionable looks, until the ground gave out beneath them, falling into the hole Zoro had made.

Zoro smirked. He looked over his shoulder to see Katara still clutching onto him, her eyes shut with her head on the back of his neck.

"You know, you _can_ let go now," Zoro told her.

Katara's eyes flew opened. She glanced around to see if they were in danger of not. Well, they are, but no bounty hunters were coming their way. She let go of Zoro and softly landed on her two feet.

"Whew… that was intense," Katara said.

"There's still more bounty hunters around, so it's probably going to be even more intense, especially with the agents as well," Zoro informed her. He then crossly muttered to himself, "I told you not to waste that ale."

Katara heard that last part but decided to ignore it. "Zoro, what's this…Ba-roque Works?" she asked curiously, trying to repeat the name from memory.

"Don't really know myself. All I know is it's just a criminal organizati-"

"OH MY GOSH! _ZORO, WATCH OUT!_" Katara yelled suddenly.

"**GRRAAAAHHHH**!" roared a voice.

Zoro already knew what was coming. He ducked and landed on the ground just as a latter swung past him, while Katara tripped backwards and landed on her rear. The latter was swung by the brawny woman, Miss Monday, but just missing Zoro, the latter hit the side of the wall instead and snapped in two. Katara was lucky enough to not get hit by the remaining half of it.

"Whoa…okay, that was _too_ close…" Zoro said in relief.

Miss Monday threw the other half of the latter to the side and began to equip her right hand with one of her brass knuckles.

"You're in for it now, swordsman!" Miss Monday said threateningly. She grabbed Zoro by the throat and lifted him up. Katara, stunned and frightened, looked on in horror helplessly at Zoro's predicament.

"It was a good effort, but there's no man who can best my strength!" Miss Monday boasted. "Now you die!"

She slammed Zoro on the ground with her hand on his neck. She lifted her right brass knuckled hand, ready to smash Zoro's head in.

Katara looked on in dismay once more. There was nothing she could do. She couldn't save Zoro, or anyone else for that matter. She was just sitting there like a scared girl.

She hadn't been able to protect anyone…

Katara couldn't just sit here. She had to at _least _try! She-

"TASTE MY SUPERHUMAN BRASS KNUCKLES!" shouted Miss Monday, bringing her fist down on Zoro's face.

**_BAAAM!_**

A crater formed underneath them.

Katara sat there, mouth open in horror.

"**ZOROOOO**!"

* * *

Mr. 8 stood on the ground floor, along with Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday, watching the debris smoke rise up and fade away.

"What a waste of- _ahem_. Maaa~…time. But we now managed to finally put an end to him. Now for the girl…" Mr. 8 said, as he waited for Miss Monday to fetch her.

But then he heard an agonizing yell that sounded too feminine to be Zoro.

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

"WHAT!" Mr. 8 cried, wide eyed, as were Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday.

* * *

Katara was stunned.

Zoro was… _standing_! His hand was gripping Miss Monday's head, making her kneel to the ground! To make things even more amazing, his injury was only a bleeding bruise on his head!

'_This guy isn't human!' _thought Katara with wide eyes, and a look of shock.

"So, you think you're strong, muscle woman?" Zoro said in a threatening low voice. "Well then, let's see who's stronger."

Zoro gripped her head with his hand, in which Miss Monday was grunting and crying out in agony, with such great force that it soon causes her to be unconscious. Zoro let go of her head and she plopped on her back on the rooftop ground, out cold.

Katara just kept gawking at the display of sheer brute strength that Zoro demonstrated. She never had seen anyone _at all_ that just got pummeled in the face by some brass knuckles – which belonged to a possibly superhuman woman – and just _live_ to stand and act like nothing happened to him. What exactly _is _Zoro? She thought back to Luffy's strange powers and how he fought Laboon with them, so…

Katara just shook her head. _'This world just got _completely _weirder...' _

But either way, she was glad that Zoro was alright.

"_No way!_ Miss Monday lost the battle of strength!" yelled a bounty hunter that was accompanying Mr. 8 and the others.

"That's impossible! It can't be!" cried another.

"Forget this, I'm _outta here_! I don't want to fight that guy!" declared a terrified hunter. The rest of the bounty hunters agreed and high tailed it out of there, leaving Mr. 8 and the other agents in the dust.

"WAIT! COME BACK! YOU HAVE A MISSION TO FULFILL!" shouted Mr. 9 after them.

Zoro looked down at the retreating bounty hunters, chuckling. "Heh. Well, it looks like it's just me and you three," he said with a smirk. "Shall we keep going, Baroque Works? I'd like to finish what I start." He licked the blood leaking from his head wound.

Mr. 8 just gritted his teeth. But then his eyes widened as he suddenly had a realization. "Of course! It's all clear now! The Marines must've gotten the wanted posters wrong! It's this man that's the captain!"

"Y-yes, of course! It has to be! I can see how this guy can be worth thirty million berries! He must be the _real_ captain!" Mr. 9 said.

Miss Wednesday narrowed her eyes. "Then we'll fight him like he is one!"

Katara stood up and looked down from the roof as well to hear the agent's discussion. _'They think _Zoro _is the captain?' _She would have objected to say that Luffy was the captain, but she stopped and thought about it for a second. If she gave away Luffy's position to these lowlifes, they'll cause him trouble. So she wisely decided to keep her mouth shut from revealing anything. Speaking of Luffy, she wished he was here right now. They could use all the help they can get.

Mr. 8 grunted. "Losing to a lone pirate swordsman with the help of a girl. This is disgraceful. And the boss left the town in our care!" Mr. 8 narrowed his eyes and said solemnly, "That means we've failed him."

Everyone was silent. And Katara didn't like the silence one bit.

Mr. 8 lifted the saxophone up to his lips…

"IGARAPPA!"

…and blew out a barrage of bullets.

Katara gave out a quick yelp at the sudden bullets that were pelting the side of the building she was standing on and ran away from the fire. Zoro, surprised, rolled out of the way, the bullets barely hitting him.

"Try to get the girl," commanded Mr. 8 with the saxophone tip in his mouth.

"Right! Ready Miss Wednesday!" said Mr. 9.

"Ready Mr. 9!" replied Miss Wednesday.

Mr. 9, with such super agility, flip-jumped onto the second floor and third floor - which Zoro and Katara were on - and onto the roof of the building, which was a church. Katara was awestruck at the impossible display of acrobatics that Mr. 9 was performing.

"Un-unbelievable!"

Mr. 9 heard Katara and smirked, boastingly saying "Ah yes! I'm quite the talented acrobat, aren't I? And my skills are ones to be feared!"

"So you jump around a lot. So what?" Zoro said, not impressed.

"_QUIET YOU!"_ Mr. 9 said fiercely. "I'll show you what I can do!"

Miss Wednesday meanwhile put her index finger and thumb in her mouth and whistled loudly. "Come Karoo!"

Katara and Zoro glanced over to see a bird-like creature that came into the scene. It was the size of a riding animal and had the features of a duck and an ostrich. The animal was wearing a chullo hat on its head - along with goggles that were strapped to the hat - with a saddle on its back, equipped with two large fanny packs on each of its side and a small barrel with a straw on it looped around its neck. The animal's feathers were yellow, its tail feathers pitch black, and its bill orange and black, with the tip of its beak only orange.

"Wow…" Katara said, amazed at the sight of the animal. "What is that?"

"Heck if I know," Zoro said as he looked at the bird with a raised eyebrow.

The bird named Karoo stood there for a while… and lifted his right wing.

"KAROO, I DIDN'T SAY SHAKE HANDS! _COME OVER HERE!_" Miss Wednesday shouted to the duck-like creature.

Katara blinked in bafflement.

Karoo came over as Miss Wednesday jumped on his saddle. "Alright, Karoo! Show them how fast you are! Show them the speed that puts a panther to shame!" Miss Wednesday exclaimed.

Karoo quacked… only to sit down.

"_WHO TOLD YOU TO SIT!_" Miss Wednesday screamed aggravatingly, hitting Karoo upside the head.

"_What on earth?" _Katara questioned to herself in confusion.

"Hahaha! I wouldn't turn my back if I were you!" said a confident Mr. 9.

Zoro and Katara turned behind them to see Mr. 9 doing rapid back somersaults as he cascaded down the curved structure of the church onto the roof of the third floor. While doing back somersaults, Mr. 9 then swung a metal bat in Zoro's direction (1), of which Zoro deflected with his sword just in time. Mr. 9, with the velocity of his acrobats, flew over Zoro and landed on his two feet, with two metal bats in his hand.

"Hahahahaha! Careful not to nick your precious blades, swordsman! These bats are made of one-hundred percent pure metal!" Mr. 9 informed.

Katara watched the start of their fight with uneasy anticipation. Zoro was inspecting his blade to make sure it wasn't chipped. It wasn't.

"What's the matter?" Mr. 9 obnoxiously taunted. "Are you too scared to fight?"

Zoro answered by pointing one of his swords directly in front of Mr. 9's face threateningly. Mr. 9 made an 'eep' noise and arched back. Zoro, with only one hand, began fencing Mr. 9, as the dual metal bat wielding agent frantically parried Zoro's attacks.

Katara was watching the fight in awe when she felt something constricting around her arms. She yelped as she was pulled from behind, by none other than Miss Wednesday, who was on the roof and riding Karoo, and had a rope looped around her.

"As Mr. 9 had stated, you shouldn't turn your back on your adversaries," Miss Wednesday said with smirk.

Katara grunted as she tried to struggle from her binding. She looked up to see that she missed the outcome of the fight with Zoro and Mr. 9, with Zoro apparently being the winner, as Mr. 9 was nowhere to be seen. She did, however, heard a high pitched male scream that sounded like Mr. 9. Katara figured that Zoro might have knocked him off the edge of the building or something.

"Zoro!" Katara yelled.

Zoro turned to Katara to see that she was wrapped around by a rope and was carried on Miss Wednesday's duck-thing, Karoo. Zoro gave out an annoyed frown. "Ah, crap. At least learn to defend yourself, Katara," he said irritably.

Katara just scowled at him.

"Well, well, Mr. Bushido, it seems you have beaten Mr. 9. I'll let you know, however, that I am also not one to be underestimated with!" Miss Wednesday said as she began to stand on the back of Karoo. She then said flirtatiously, "Take a good look at my outfit," Zoro raised an eyebrow at this suggestion. She then began to sway her hips as well as her whole body back and forth as she did some sort of enchanting dance. Her shirt, which had three hypnotic patterns on it – two on each side of her breasts and one on her stomach -, started to hypnotized Zoro as she continued her swaying dance.

"Enchanting Vertigo Dance…" Miss Wednesday said playfully.

Eyes wide, Zoro started to lose his footing. He knelt down with one leg on the ground, trying to regain his posture. Katara watched his predicament with much worry and shouted, "Zoro! Snap out of it!"

"Too late! He's helpless!" Miss Wednesday smirked. "And now for the finale!" She pulled out something that looked like a colorful looking razor sharp blade with a string attached to it, along with a finger handle. She slipped her left pinky finger in the handle, then pulled the blade to make the string longer, and twirled it around in a fast, deadly fashion.

"Here it comes! Go Karoo! _PEACOCK SLASHER!_" Miss Wednesday exclaimed.

Karoo charged at the swordsman with a loud quack. Zoro, still feeling a little woozy, noticed that Miss Wednesday was coming right towards him with her twirling weapon, ready to dispose of him.

Or at least that's what he thought. Apparently, Karoo was going the wrong way as Miss Wednesday's twirling blade was at her left side, yet Karoo was passing Zoro on his right. Zoro took the opportunity to try to grab Katara off the big duck. With little bearing he had, he succeeded as he quickly snatched the back of her shirt and pulled her off.

"Eep!" cried Katara as she fell down on Zoro.

"WHAT ARE YOU _DOING_! YOU'RE GOING THE WRONG WAY!" Miss Wednesday yelled at Karoo. She then saw that they were heading towards the roof edge. "KAROO, STOP! _STOP!_" But unfortunately for her and her ride, they all fell off the roof. "AAAAAAHHHHH!"

**_CRASH!_**

Katara blinked at the display of buffoonery. _'Wow…that was…pitiful.' _

She then noticed that she still was tied up, and was basically on Zoro with her the side of her face on his chest with his arm wrapped securely around her. Eyes wide, she looked upwards at Zoro to see that he regained his bearings. He got up, still holding Katara, and rubbed his head.

At this point, Katara was trying desperately hard not to blush a bright red at how close her face was on his masculine chest.

'_Girl, get it together…' _she frantically said in her mind.

"Hey, why's your face red? You sick now or something?" Zoro said obliviously.

'_Darn it!'_ "Could you just help me with the ropes!" Katara said hurriedly, avoiding eye contact with him.

"Okay! Damn, what's your problem? Just saved your life and all I get is a snap remark," Zoro grumbled.

Katara winced. She did say that a little harshly. She was about to apologize when an angry voice spoke out, "Give me the girl!"

They turned their heads towards a not very happy Mr. 8, who was readying his shotgun/saxophone.

Zoro raised an eyebrow curiously. "And why, pray tell, would I do that? You've all been going after my tail the whole time, but you all want her alive instead. Why is that?"

"That is none of your concern. Now give me the girl!" Mr. 8 ordered.

"Afraid I can't do that," Zoro said with a frown.

"Why _do_ you want me alive? I know about your organization as well!" asked a confused Katara.

Mr. 8 just stared at them with glowered eyes, gritting his teeth. He then said, "Look, do not make this harder than it already is! You have an extraordinary power, little girl, and we wished to explore this ability! Now we can do this the easy way, or the hard way!"

"Let me guess. The easy way is I hand over Katara, and then you kill me on the spot. And the hard way is that you take her by force, thus killing me in the process as well." Zoro scowled. "I personally don't like those choices. Besides, you wouldn't use that weapon of yours on me while I'm carrying her, would you?" He said with smirk.

Mr. 8 just gritted his teeth in aggravation.

And in an instant, Zoro hastily picked up Katara bridal style and dashed to the hole on the roof that he made. Mr. 8, surprised, but recovered quickly, blew his saxophone/shotgun at the running swordsman. Zoro evaded the bullets and went down the hole, with Katara screaming the whole way.

Mr. 8 growled. "Going down a rabbit hole won't save you. From this point on, I'll show you the _meaning_ of fear."

Zoro landed on the multiple unconscious bodies of the bounty hunters that fell down the hole, with Katara still in his arms, who was quite shaken a bit. He ran out the door and into an alley in between some buildings, so as not to be spotted.

He placed Katara down on her two feet; the girl was out breath, mostly from the adrenaline from all the action that's been taking place. Zoro then pulled two of his swords out and used one to swiftly cut off the binding rope that was constricting the waterbender.

"T-thanks," she managed to say.

"No problem," Zoro said, and went down to business. "Okay listen up, that guy with the shotgun thing may be the only real threat right now. Think you can handle yourself from here on out?"

"Wha-what?" she stuttered, a bit surprised.

Zoro sighed, "Look, I can't protect you the entire time. You'll have to try again to defend yourself," he said. He saw some barrels over to his left that situated near them. "I see some barrels of ale over there. Bend it and use it all to fight. Just don't _drop_ or _waste it_ this time!" He said the last sentence in an annoyed tone.

Katara didn't know for sure if he was aggravated that she wasted the ale because she was careless, or because he just hated to see alcohol go to waste.

Then all of a sudden, next to the building they were once on, someone shot up from wrecked wooden crates and barrels, surprising Katara. It was none other than Mr. 9, and he wasn't the slightest bit happy.

"Aaaaargh! You lousy swordsman! You think you can pull the wool over my eyes, you freaking bastard!" exclaimed Mr. 9.

Zoro raised an eyebrow at him. "What are you talking about? You're the one who fell."

"_ENOUGH OF THIS!_ HOME-RUN HIDE-A-BAT!" Apparently, one of his bats he was carrying was also a device that made the top part of the bat come lunging out towards Zoro. Caught off guard, he raised his left arm with his sword in hand, only to let a steel rope, that was connected to the bottom half of the bat, wrap around it.

"Zoro!" cried an alarmed Katara.

"What in the-?" Zoro questioned.

"HAHAHAHAHA! Now I've got you!" exclaimed Mr. 9. He wrapped the steel rope around his arm as well, so he could pull Zoro out of his hiding place.

"There you are!" said Mr. 8, still on top of the roof and looking down on them.

Katara looked at Zoro, then at Mr. 9, and then at Mr. 8 with wandering anxious eyes. She then remembered the barrels of ale that were nearby and ran to it. She quickly bent some of the contents out of the barrel and went into a waterbending stance. She narrowed her eyes in contempt.

Mr. 9 growled, "Damn it! Hurry Mr. 8! Finish the swordsman off _now_!"

Katara was about to dash at Mr. 9, when…

"Stop right there, water girl!" cried a feminine voice.

Katara halted in her tracks, still keeping the ale in her hands, and looked behind her to see…

Katara gasped in shock, "Luffy!"

Zoro glanced over his shoulder to see the round stomach form of Luffy who was snoozing away, but was propped up by Karoo's beak and being held by Miss Wednesday with a dangerous looking sword in her left hand.

Zoro scowled, "Ugh, idiot. At least be awake when you're being captured."

"Don't try anything bold witch, or else I'll poke a hole in his round stomach." Miss Wednesday confidently threatened.

"Hahaha! Very good Miss Wednesday! Now they can't run away or fight back!" stated Mr. 9.

Katara glared at Miss Wednesday and tried to lift her arm when the lady agent said, "Try to do any fancy water tricks, and I will kill him! Now drop it!"

Katara stopped at what she was doing. She cursed to herself and looked back at Zoro and back at Luffy, contemplating on what to do at this situation. If she dared tried to attack anybody, Luffy will surely be injured, plus she couldn't help Zoro. She really was in a tight situation.

Seeing no other choice, she dropped the liquid in defeat. Miss Wednesday smirked. "Good."

Mr. 8 stood firmly. "Alright then! Time to end this!" He pulled the collar strings of his shirt to activate… cannons in his hair curls. Katara was confused dumbfounded at first, but when Mr. 8 aimed them at Zoro, she gasped.

"No! Zoro!"

"Preparations complete!" Mr. 8 announced.

"What in the-! What is he, a toy!" Zoro said incredulously.

Mr. 8 looped his thumbs in the holes of his shirt collar and was ready to pull them.

"**IGARAPPAPPA!**"

Zoro, thinking really quickly, grabbed the steel rope with his right hand, and with all his superhuman strength, swung Mr. 9, whose arm was also wrapped by the steel rope, and swung him to the oncoming fire.

Mr. 8 pulled the strings to fire the cannons, but the line of fire was interrupted by a surprised Mr. 9, who was pelted by the explosive bombs instead.

**_BOOOOOM!_**

While that was going on, Miss Wednesday and Katara's eyes widen in surprise. Katara looked over her shoulder to see that Miss Wednesday was distracted.

'_Now's my chance!' _Katara thought hastily.

She quickly bent and gathered more ale in the open barrel with one hand and threw it at Miss Wednesday, which froze her on the spot, leaving only her head visible.

"AAAAHHHH!" Miss Wednesday screamed.

Karoo quacked in dismay and let go of the sleeping Luffy to try and peck the iced alcohol off of her.

But that didn't last long, as Zoro swung Mr. 9 to his new course: her and Karoo. The steel rope snapped and off flew Mr. 9, colliding with Miss Wednesday - who broke her out of her icy alcohol-ish cocoon - and Karoo, as they crashed through more crates and barrels.

Katara smirked. _'That'll teach 'em.' _

"**IGARAPPAPPA!**" Mr. 8 yelled, firing the cannons once more.

She jumped at the loud voice above her, and turned around to see Zoro evading away from the fire, making the ground he once was standing on explode. Zoro recovered and ran past her towards Luffy, with a hand on the hilt of one of his swords. Katara blinked, wondering what Zoro was doing.

Zoro ran to the fat form of Luffy, while saying out loud, "Sorry Luffy, gonna need your stomach for a second!" He then jumped on Luffy's belly, hand ready to unsheathe one of his swords.

"What is he…?" Mr. 8 said to himself cautiously.

Zoro then dropped all of his weight on Luffy's stomach, using it like a trampoline, and with a mighty bounce, sprung himself upwards to Mr. 8, with his sword out, ready in hand.

**_SLAAASSHH!_**

"UUUHHH!" groaned Mr. 8 in agony as he fell backwards on the rooftop floor with slash wounds on his chest. Zoro smoothly landed on the roof as well.

Katara watched in wide eyed amazement. '_Whoa...'_

She looked at the unconscious forms of Mr. 9, Miss Wednesday, and Karoo; then she realized… that they'd done it. They'd survived the night. They'd won! She smiled in content.

'_We... we actually did it! We beat them!' _She thought as she let out a big sigh of relief.

Katara suddenly heard a groan. She turned around, alert, and summoned more alcohol from the barrels ready to use it at her disposal, but relaxed as she realized it was just Luffy, who had woken up and was sitting upwards, groggily scratching his straw hat covered head.

"Ugh… huh? Why am I outside?" said a sleepy Luffy as he slowly observed his surroundings.

"Luffy! Are you okay?" Katara called to him.

Luffy gazed over at Katara with sleepy eyes. "Oh, hey Katara!" he drowsily smiled. "What are you doing out here? Did the party decided to go outside to celebrate?"

Katara blinked. "Um, no… there was-"

A loud grumble came from Luffy's stomach. He made a face and said, "Sorry, don't wanna talk right now. My tummy hurts. And I'm pretty sleepy right now, so… night."

Luffy then plopped back on the ground fast asleep again.

Katara just stared at the sleeping Luffy and gave him a weird look. "Um… okay Luffy… goodnight." The weird look changed into a smile. She'll explain everything to him later.

Katara decided to check up on Zoro on the roof to see if he was okay, so with much stairs to climb in the house, she made it up on the roof where the church was.

She paused to see Zoro pushing Miss Monday and Mr. 8 off the rooftop, letting them fall on more barrels and crates.

"There," Zoro said as he dusted his hands off.

'_Wow… harsh.' _Katara thought with a winced look.

Zoro gave out a relaxed sigh. "Finally, a nice, quiet night."

He noticed Katara's presence and looked at her direction. "Oh, hey Katara. Nice fighting back there," he said with a smirk.

Katara blinked and blushed, "Uh, thanks. You were, um… pretty good at what you did yourself."

Zoro chuckled. "Thanks. I like to think I did well myself."

Katara smiled. Zoro plopped down on the roof and laid back. She decided to join him, so she sat down next to him.

They sat for a while looking at the night sky. Katara thought back at what Zoro said about joining Luffy's crew. All she ever got out of him was that apparently Luffy made him join. She probably… could understand that… she thought. He didn't have time to tell her everything. However, she did thing of another question to ask Zoro. One that was quite interesting…

"Hey Zoro?"

"Hm?"

"Just asking, but…" she faltered. "…well, I don't know if I should asking you this or not, since it might be personal, but I thought this would be a good place to ask you since no one is around, but I don't want to invade anything that's private to you so-"

"Just ask me, Katara."

"Oh! Um, right… uh, why did you want to become a swordsman?"

Zoro turned his head towards her with a raised eyebrow, but then directed his head back to the sky, carrying an expression that looked like he was considering on telling her.

Then he said, "If you must know… I want to fulfil a promise to someone."

"A promise? To who?"

"…To a friend. I promised her to be the best swordsman there is." He narrowed his eyes. "No, not just the best… the greatest."

'_Her?' _"Oh…" Katara sat there, thinking about what he said. If it involved a girl, she wasn't going to dig any further, so his answer was good enough.

"I faced the greatest swordsman in the world, though."

Katara snapped her attention back to Zoro. "Really? You did?" she said with much interest.

"Yep. I lost though, but he gave me a good souvenir to let me remind myself that I needed more practice."

"Souvenir?" Katara asked, puzzled.

"Uh-huh. By slicing my chest wide open."

Katara's eyes widen and her mouth dropped in horror. So… that was what that odd slithering bump was on his chest when her face was pressed against…

'_Whoa, don't think about that right now…'_

"Pretty damn lucky I survived that ordeal," Zoro said, mainly to himself.

"What was his name?" Katara felt like she had to ask.

Zoro gazed at her at the corner of his eyes. He looked upward again, shrugged and said, "Mihawk."

Katara accepted that answer. She then thought of her brother… "My older brother is somewhat of a swordsman." She just thought of mentioning that.

"Really now?" Zoro turned to Katara with a smirk.

"Yeah! …Well, actually he just started… but he's doing well with what he learned so far! But in all honesty, I don't really think he can pull off all those stunts that you did."

Zoro chuckled. "Well if he keeps trying, maybe he'll find his own style of swordplay. I like to test out his skill."

Katara once again smiled.

Suddenly, Zoro's smirk turn into a frown and he sat up. Katara, taken aback, wondered what the matter was.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know… maybe it's just me… but I have a funny feeling that we are about to have more company."

"What?"

* * *

Mr. 8 sluggishly lifted himself off the ground. '_No… there's no way I'm going to die here! I have a sworn duty to…'_

"Oh the shame. Beaten by a lone swordsman."

Mr. 8 turned his head to see two other individuals standing behind him.

One of them was a lightly tanned man who had a pair of white sunglasses with red lenses on and has wild black hair. The man was wearing a scarf and a red long jacket along with red pants and shoes. On the jacket were three white 5's on his left chest, his upper left sleeve, and a big 5 on the left bottom of it.

The other person was a woman wearing a yellow dress that had orange citrus patterns on it. She was wearing an orange dome like hat and had circled, orange citrus earrings. She was also wearing white high heels and had short blond hair.

"Mr. 5! Miss Valentine!" Mr. 8 exclaimed, startled.

"What are you doing, fooling around, huh?" The man named Mr. 5 coolly mocked.

"Kyahahahahaha! He can't help it! I mean, what do you expect from someone of his rank?" The woman named Miss Valentine laughed and also ridiculed.

Mr. 8 grunted irritably. "What are you two doing here? Did you just come here to laugh at us?" Mr. 8 said with frustration, as he drowsily stood up.

Mr. 5 smirked. "No, that's just a bonus."

Miss Valentine laughed her unusual laugh. "We're here on official business of course!"

At this moment, Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday dragged themselves out of the wreckage. Mr. 9 tiredly spoke out, "Ah… well that's good. Surely with your help, we can beat them."

"Yeah," said an exhausted Miss Wednesday. "Hurry and finish that swordsman and retrieve that water girl."

Mr. 5 just stared at the two. "You _must_ be _joking_." He sneered.

* * *

Katara watched the scene from above the roof along with Zoro. She kept her eyes focused on each and every one that was talking. Her eyes then shifted to Luffy. She inwardly gasped.

'_Oh no! Luffy!'_

She whispered to Zoro, "Zoro, Luffy's down there, what do we do?"

Zoro just smirked, "Well, I'll have to fetch him, I suppose."

Katara gazed at him with baffled eyes. "Um… now?"

He shrugged. "Well, when I have the chance, yeah."

The scene below them kept going.

"Help you? You think we came all the way here on the Grand Line to do _your_ dirty work?" Miss Valentine laughed.

"What?" said a confused Mr. 9. "Then why are you here?"

"Don't you get it?" Mr. 5 replied. "Why would the boss send the two of us?"

"The boss's exact words were, 'My secret is out'. Of course, we don't know what the secret is," explained Miss Valentine.

Katara looked down with much curiosity and interest. _'The boss's secret? What's this about?'_

"Our organization's motto is 'Mystery'. We _never _reveal the identity of any of our people," Mr. 5 stated. "And especially not the boss's."

"In our investigation, we discovered that agents of a certain monarchy have infiltrated Baroque Works," Miss Valentine said.

Mr. 9 suddenly shot up. "W-what! H-hey, wait a minute! I may wear a crown, but I'm no king! I swear!"

"Not you!"

Katara watched the whole thing with puzzlement. _'A monarchy?' _She wondered. _'Wait… agents? Who… wha…?' _

"The spy… is someone who's gone missing in the kingdom of Alabasta," Mr. 5 informed with a smirk.

Then all of a sudden, Mr. 8 readied his hair cannons and fired at Mr. 5. "I WON'T LET YOU TOUCH HER! DIE! **IGARAPPAPPA!"**

The bombshells soared over at Mr. 5, exploding on impact.

"_IGARAM!_" Miss Wednesday cried out to… Mr. 8?

"Igaram?" Mr. 9 said baffled.

'_Igaram? But wasn't his name Igarappoi?'_ Katara thought in confusion. _'What is _going_ on?'_

* * *

(End chapter 7)

(1.) Don't ask where those bats came from, I don't know myself. :p

FINALLY! Sorry about the random cliff-hanger, but I thought stopping here was a little suitable. That, and I don't felt like writing more stuff. Now that I'm finished with this chapter, Kasek will write the other chapter with his excellent writing, thus starting the collab! And that means I'll get to start working on my other fics! :)

Well that's all for now! Please review! :D

(And Merry belated Christmas! XD )


	8. Battles And Onto The Next Island

**Oh my gosh…I am SO sorry everyone for making you wait this long. I truly am. Words cannot express how much I felt like a complete procrastinated jerk. Truth be told, I do needed help on this, and I do needed a collab partner, but my collab partner was not feeling the creative juices flowing in him, and I relieved him from his position. **

**And then even though I understood, I just couldn't take it anymore. **

**I then thought, "You know what? Screw it. I'm just going to work on the chapter."**

**…**

**But…**

**NO NEED TO FEAR…YET AGAIN! 8D**

**I have a new collab partner! And his name is Simple Tactic(which used to be called CreationDestruction.)! :D And this time he's gonna help me with this story! So here's hoping! ^^**

**But again, I am SO, SO, SO, SORRY for this extremely long wait. Everyone please forgive me.**

**Also, please forgive me for making Katara act like she couldn't fight, but I was trying to make her sense the danger of this new world she was in. But THIS TIME, she will be her warrior self! Mark my words! …But there won't be any bloodbending. Sorry! …Well not anytime soon… ;)**

**By the way, someone mention that you CAN'T freeze alcohol…well, this story is fictional and let's just say Katara has the power to do that. I've come this far and I'm not going to stop now because of a mess up! :P**

**Also, just so you all know, I spelled Vivi's duck companion Karoo, but Simple Tactic spelled it Caruie, so…I don't know which correct spelling it is or which pronunciation it is, but I'm just going to go with calling him 'Carue'(Sorry ST, but I think there MIGHT not be an 'i' in Carue. I don't know, maybe there is depending on the accent, but I'm just going to stick with this name for now, so I hope that's okay.).**

**AND NOW WITHOUT FURTHER ADO…ON WITH THE SHOW! …FINALLY! 8D**

* * *

As the fire crackled and the scene unfolded, Katara could only watch in speculative fear and interest as the intensifying argument continued.

"RUN FOR IT PRINCESS, PLEASE!"

Ms. Wednesday, after being ushered into running away from the danger by Igarappoi, now known as Igaram, was about to depart but was interrupted by the new-comer Ms. Valentine, who delivered a blow to her head and broke her hair-piece, releasing her pony-tail.

Ms. Wednesday attempted to retaliate, but was quickly interrupted by an explosion. She diverted her attention and saw the engulfment of fire of the collapsed form of Igaram.

"Igaram! IGARAM!" shouted Ms. Wednesday.

"The name of the spy is Igaram, leader of the kingdom of Alabasta's royal guards. And the other spy..." Began an unharmed Mr. 5, emerging from the inferno, "...is none other than the Princess of Alabasta herself, Vivi Nefertari!"

Katara gasped, caused by three developments- the revelation of a secret internal investigation within a secret organization, the fact that the two double agents were people of high standing in their societies, and that Zoro grabbed her around the waist in a surprise motion, quickly running off into the nearest alley, dragging along the round, fat body of a still slumbering Luffy.

"Ah! Hey, let go!" She yelped, as he was holding her highly uncomfortably in a horizontal pose and squeezing her torso so she wouldn't fall while he fled. "I can-"

But her bickering was cut short the moment an explosion rang, and she strained her neck to see the flying body of Mr. 9 soar through the air and crash down, a plume of smoke coming forth from him.

"Damn, that's one dangerous booger."Zoro commented, and Katara couldn't quite understand what he meant by that.

"Wait, wha- OW!"

She landed with a thud onto the hard ground, her injury having been caused by the fact that Igaram had clutched Zoro's leg and the surprise forced Zoro to loosen his grip upon his load.

"Mr. Swordsman! Please! Due to your great strength, please allow me to make an unreasonable request!" Began the bloodied guard, while Katara picked herself off the ground, and glared at an oblivious Zoro while brushing the dirt from her clothes.

"Let go of me! I won't help you just because you suck up to me!" He growled at the foot hold.

"Those two are fruit users and it is not within my power to stop them! Please, please protect the princess in my place! I beg you! If you manage to send her back to Alabasta in safety, a kingdom in the far east, I swear you shall be greatly rewarded!" He offered in desperation.

Katara's motherly nature was beginning to develop a tiny scrap of sympathy for this man and his begging, unlike Zoro, who quite bluntly threatened Igraram with death if he didn't shut up. She looked at him sadly and asked, "Well, why are you two in this organization? Did you realize you were hurting people?"

"YES I KNOW THAT!" Igaram exclaimed, startling Katara. "I'm not proud of it, and I'm sure my princess is not proud of it either, but we had to infiltrate this organization to play the part!" Igaram then said miserably. "I can't explain it now but please…as I said, you'll be greatly rewarded. Just save the princess, I beg of you!"

"Greatly rewarded, you say?" Began an intrigued voice, and the trio turned to see a grinning Nami, perched on the roof of one of the houses, highly interested in this "reward". "How about one billion beli?" She offered.

"W-what? O-one billion?" Igaram croaked from shock, his jaw collapsed at the enormous sum that Nami had put up for their service.

"O-one billion?" Katara whispered to herself, equally shocked but not nearly exaggerated. She had heard that Nami had a penchant for money, but this was ridiculous. It reminded her very much of Toph's short-lived scamming business, and how much trouble it had gotten them into.

"Didn't you get drunk and fall asleep?" Zoro asked instead, and Katara wondered just how Zoro could ignore Nami's inordinate demands.

"You think I can fall asleep in a town that eagerly greets pirates?" She replied, as if it were the most obvious answer in the world (it was quite obvious, though, Katara thought). "I made up the whole thing. Am I good or what?"She complimented herself, her hand poised near her mouth as if sipping from an invisible glass.

"Is that so?" Zoro snorted, while Igaram looked like he was going to have a heart attack.

"Well then, Mr. Royal guard, will you pay us the one billion?" Nami plastered on her best snide grin for this, and added: "If we won't help, your princess will end up dead."

"How can a soldier like myself find that kind of sum?" He shrieked, and Nami pouted.

"So money is worth more than your princess?" She argued, and while they really were short on funds, Katara had a hard time believing that Nami, at this time when said princess was being hunted down, had the time to coolly negotiate and sate her hungry greed.

Igaram was put into a corner by Nami's clever tongue, frantically thinking over the course of action. He coughed out: "If you aid the princess, you can speak to her upfront. I'm sure that she will accept." He wasn't really sure, but now was not the time to speculate on that. Lives were at stake but a short distance away.

"You mean we have to help the princess first?" Nami asked, disappointed, and Katara was right about to burst when Igaram spoke her mind.

"While we are negotiating, the princess is-" He began to yell, but Nami interrupted him with a sigh.

"Alright, we'll help your princess first. Now! Go, Zoro, Katara!" She ordered, pointing off into the distance.

"If you want to help, why won't you go yourself? How come I have to help you get money?" Zoro roared in anger, furious that he had to play the role of lackey for an agreement he had little part in.

"He's right! You made the deal, you have to help too!" Katara added in equal emotion, for equal reason.

"Are you serious? If it's about money, it's about me. But if it's about the promise, everyone should help." She argued, this time pointing accusingly at Zoro.

"How can you be so selfish!" He shrieked, with Katara's agreement.

"What? I just asked you to hurt somebody. Is there a problem with that?"

"I don't want to be used by people. Don't compare me to that idiot of a chef."

"Are you afraid that you're gonna lose? Hmm?" She teased, and Zoro could have hurt her right there on the spot.

Katara, spectator to this banter and realizing that it was going nowhere, noticed Luffy wake up from his sleep and get up, groggy from his slumber.

"Luffy! You're awake!" She began relieved, rushing towards him while Nami and Zoro continued their argument, noticing neither Luffy's waking nor Katara's leave. "Listen Luffy, you've gotta-"

"Not now. Bathroom." He lazily mumbled in earshot, leaving a standing and staring Katara pointing down the alley, now lost for words. She stared after Luffy as he walked off, looked back at the bickering duo still locked in their verbal fight, groaned irritably towards the night sky and ran off by her lonesome self to the aid of the princess.

She ran into a nearby alleyway and bended a good amount of ale and water from wherever she may, be it barrels or simple puddles. Once content with her amount, she continued forward through the maze of houses, searching for any clues that could lead her to Vivi, who was by this time in some other part of the village.

There was wreckage and unconscious bodies all over, what was left over from the battle of earlier. Broken crates to jump over, ruined plasterwork that kicked up dust wherever she ran, and the silver shine of the moon as her own only light source, aiding her in her hunt for the princess and her two adversaries.

No, not here-She thought as she came to a dead end for the fifth consecutive time, each time her pace increasing until she could hardly force herself to brake in her steps. She ran up another alley and onto another street, only to see this one empty as well. "Ugh!" She yelled, her patience running thin and her annoyance increasing several fold as she ran faster still, anywhere.

An explosion following a plume of smoke from the next street had her run through one final alley and, in her blind rush and quick speed, crash straight into an escaping Carue and Vivi, sending all three soaring through the air and into the wall of the nearest house.

"Ow..." Katara groaned as she picked herself out of the debris, turning to a laughing Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine.

"He-he-he! What luck to have our little princess stalled for us!" Giggled Ms. Valentine, her sinister smile stretched even wider.

"So it seems."Mr. 5 agreed, preparing another explosive booger, regardless of who he hit and whether or not they were heavily injured, as long as the end goal was completed.

Before Vivi and Carue could remove themselves from the collapsed wall in order to retreat or attack, Katara, ignoring her pain and fueled by her boiling agitation, bended back the liquid that had fallen and soaked the ground around them into a usable form, surprising both her enemies into a moment's stupor at her startling display.

It was enough, for with a quick twist of her arm a water whip emerged and lunged itself at the two agents, scoring a forceful bullseye hit into their sides and sending them both into the nearest wall just as Zoro came round the corner.

"Huh? Did I miss the fight?" He asked with a hint of disappointment, for all he saw was an angry Katara glaring at a nearby wreckage where Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine were currently buried under, her water whip coiling and recoiling in the air above them should they attempt to attack once more. Near her, Vivi and Carue slowly stood up from their wreckage, feeling pain and numbness just about everywhere.

"W-why did you help us?" She panted breathlessly, brushing the dust out of her hair and off her clothes.

"Let's just say that we made an agreement with that royal guard guy." Zoro paraphrased simply, drawing his swords as both Ms. Valentine and Mr.5 began to emerge. Katara quickly hit them with her waterbending once more, and this time froze over their limbs to keep them secure.

"Hey! Some of us want to fight here too!" He yelled at Katara as she once again denied him his chance.

"If you wanted to fight so bad, you should have gotten here earlier instead of arguing!" She snapped, turning to face him to how that she was really not in the mood right now.

"The hell could I have? That thief wouldn't leave me alone!" He yelled back, also not wanting to get into yet another argument just as he left a previous one but unable to when snared.

"Well then, you should have just-" Katara began, only to be interrupted by a sudden yet minor explosion behind her, dusted wind and heat slamming into her backside. "W-what?" She whispered with wide eyes as from the wreckage an unscathed Mr. 5 along with a bruised, burned and coughing Ms. Valentine emerged, freed from their restraints. Zoro quickly re-drew his swords while Katara was left open, this time she being the one under a moment's shock.

"That was an interesting trick you pulled, girl. However, it wasn't enough for my Boom Boom Fruit." explained Mr. 5. Katara couldn't believe that these powers were also a result of one of those mysterious devil's fruits. "I don't know what you ate to have such abilities, but all who stand in the way of our organization die."Here he removed and flicked another booger, this time aimed towards the unarmed Katara, only for Zoro to have stepped in and manage to deflect the mucus with his sword.

"Boogers. Of all things, he makes me cut boogers." He grumbled as he inspected his sword for any lingering trace of the dirt.

Katara, having brought herself back down to reality (and finding herself somewhat disgusted by the prospect of having to fight a man that utilized his snot as a weapon), quickly broke the nearest barrels and bended their liquid contents to float over her head in a shapeless mass, the bender herself frozen in an offensive stance. Vivi and Carue, having no place to run and not seeing a reason to now with formidable allies aiding her, took their time to wonder over what agreement these pirates could have struck with Igaram, and where the guard himself was.

It was a 2-on-2 fight bordering on 2-on-1 what with Ms. Valentine's current condition. Zoro readied his swords, Katara her water, Mr. 5 reached into his nose again whilst Ms. Valentine tried to stand straight and ignore the painful burns. They were each about to make their move when a new, shrill voice interrupted the battle.

"Zoro!" It yelled from down the street, belonging to none other than a still-fat Luffy, who had appeared to come to his senses at last. Katara sighed in relief, now with Luffy in this mix the battle would be over far more quic-

"I won't forgive you this time! Let's fight!" He yelled, and both fighters gaped.

'_What. The…' _Katara thought.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Zoro roared back.

"Shut it! I'll smash the ungrateful like you into the earth!"Luffy retaliated, and although he was dead serious, with that sort of body Katara found it difficult to take him as such.

"Ungrateful?" Zoro repeated, thoroughly confused at the sudden accusation.

"That's right! They give us a good welcome and good food, and this is how you repay them!" He announces to the audience before him, and if Katara was not currently in a bending stance she would have smacked her forehead from the sheer moronic nature of the accusation. Wasn't it obvious that they were all wounded or knocked out for a reason? All of a sudden, Sokka's face-palms made all the sense in the world.

Zoro read her thoughts to a T. "Listen Luffy, these people are actually-" He began as calmly as he was capable of, but was rudely-and rather, painfully- interrupted by a charging Luffy, who even with a bloated stomach was capable of attaining great speed.

"I don't want your excuses!" He snarled, sending a rubber fist hurtling towards him and ending up punching a stone wall behind Zoro as Zoro ducked out of the way, leaving his post near Katara and also leaving her wondering just why she wasn't currently under attack by her new Captain as well- then again, Zoro did do the majority of the damage and was most likely to take the blame.

"You shouldn't turn you back on the enemy, girl." Mr. 5 warned as the pair, in all this confusion, closed in on the princess and the bender. He pulled back his fist in an attempt to explode Katara's face, but her reflexes were also sharpened from long hours of training and she managed to hit his fist with the ale instead. It was a defensive reflex, and it wouldn't have been the wisest one at this moment, as Katara feared the impact of her ale with his fist would trigger another explosion. Instead, she managed to engulf and freeze his hand, surprising even Mr. 5.

"Come on! Let's get out of here!" Katara yelled at Vivi and Carue, running in what she thought was the direction of the docks, even though the smell of sea water lingered everywhere. She did not have to say twice, for the princess and her steed very soon surpassed Katara in speed, considering that Katara took her time to find a new water source.

Behind her, Mr. 5 collided his frozen fist with his own face, exploding the ice and freeing his hand. Ms. Valentine, on the other hand, was already floating by means of her open umbrella overhead, using her bird's eye view to find the best way to drop onto the water-bender. As she was the most powerful of the two enemies, with Zoro and Luffy still engaged in a brawl a little way off, it would be wisest to eliminate her first.

Once Katara regained more liquid through various means, she had stayed still long enough for Ms. Valentine to fall right on target, with every intent of crushing her. "Ha-ha-ha -cough-! So long, girl! You won't escape my -cough- Kilo Kilo fruit!" She wheezed, manipulating her weight and dropping like an anvil.

No matter what Ms. Valentine thought, it wasn't exactly that hard to side-step out of the way, Katara mused as the agent crashed through the concrete instead of onto her, having no way of changing direction once she fell. Katara stared at the hole where the agent currently lay, apparently being too weakened to rise out and continue fighting, but it was all the better for Katara. The 2-on-1 had been brought down to a fair game of 1-on-1.

A sudden explosion right next to her sent Katara flying forward into the streets and landing roughly onto the rocky ground, her reserves either spilled or evaporated, herself both bruised and bleeding from the impact. Mr. 5 had seen the moment's drop in defense his partner's failure had caused in the waterbender, and wasted no time in exploiting it. As soon as Katara was out of the picture, Vivi would go down next.

Mr. 5 took his time approaching the fallen Katara, who quickly gathered what water she could and sent a small slash towards her enemy. He ducked his head out of the way, but with a quick backwards flick of her wrist the slash returned like a boomerang and cut Mr. 5 across the cheek from behind. He stopped for a second to touch the wound, noticing the blood on his hand as he pulled it away to stare at the injury. He was certainly pissed now.

"You've caused us enough trouble, girl." He growled as he approached Katara, who only had enough water for another useless slash attack, and was otherwise completely helpless on the ground. Neither Zoro nor Luffy, or Vivi and Carue were in sight, no one on the streets except for her and the agent. She was open and defenseless, unable to protect herself as Mr. 5 came closer and closer. Once within kicking range, he lifted his leg with every intent of making it explode along with Katara. "Now die."

Katara squeezed her eyes shut and so that she would at least not have to witness the seemingly inevitable, but instead of the expected boom she heard a yelp and a crash, followed by a rush of air.

She opened her eyes wide to see what looked like a stretched leg being pulled back a few inches before her face, and immediately understood what occurred.

Luffy, now his normal thin self(how that happened, she doesn't know. Maybe it was from all fighting exercise he had.), was standing in some rubble a few feet from her, his hat low over his face and his eyes shaded. He looked positively terrifying, with a face to scare a Saber-toothed moose lion out of its wits. Katara couldn't have imagined that the care-free and happy-go-lucky Luffy could even have such a heavy aura of menace surround him. But as soon as the aura materialized it had vanished, replaced by worry as Luffy rushed over to Katara's side.

"Are you OK?" He asked, even though it was blatant that a bruised and bleeding Katara lying on the ground was obviously not okay.

"Huh? Y-yeah, I'm okay." She mumbled, propping herself up on her elbows and looking off to her side to see Mr. 5's unconscious form lying in a pile of stones, courtesy of Luffy. Well, at least he was taken care of and the danger was averted.

She tried to stand but a sharp pain in her back- where she had collapsed onto- forced her back down. "Ugh! L-Luffy, could you get me some water? Just water?" She squeaked up at him. He curtly nodded and ran off, leaving Katara by herself on the ground.

While she was alone, staring at the night sky illuminated by the small fires Mr. 5's explosion had set off, she ran a few things over in her head, the most prominent being the fact that she couldn't defend herself as much as she thought she would. In short, by the standards this world had set for her, she was below average. For Katara, who was always known as a master, a prominent fighter, this was simply unacceptable. Besides her motherly nature, she was also a warrior, and in this land where she had joined a crew of pirates she was expected- and expected herself- to have at least some means of adequate defense. And while her bending skills were no things to laugh it, it seemed very... slow. Recalling how Zoro had rampaged through the bounty hunters earlier this very night, she understood that she needed more practice to bring herself up to what she saw as a suitable level. She could not let herself be carried around like that anymore. She was not here, with the Strawhat Pirates, to leech off them and let herself be carried on their backs to her home world, she had to be productive somehow too. The only two answers to that would be:

One: More long, hard days of training, and being on a ship in the middle of the ocean would certainly allow her plenty of that.

Two: Steering the ship. With her waterbending, she could help _Merry_ avoid possible injuries and aid Nami in keeping her on track.

Katara sighed. Ah well. At least now she had something to occupy herself with.

Within a minute or two Luffy had ran back to Katara's side, presenting her with a mug filled with water. "Is this what you wanted?" He asked her, and she nodded.

"That's good enough. Thank you, Luffy." With a wave of her good arm, the water lifted from the mug and was bended onto her other arm, beginning to glow alight as Katara began to heal herself. Luffy, who had crouched down next to her, had his eyes shine with stars witnessing the, how he saw it, magical event. "That's so cool! How're you making it glow like that?" He spoke in awe, dazzled by the luminescence water.

"This? Oh, it's just a healing session. See, waterbenders don't only bend water, we can use it to heal injuries and illnesses too." She explained, moving onto her leg now with most of the pain from her poor arm alleviated. "When we do that, it starts to glow, because we are using our chi- our energy- to move the chi inside the other person along specific chi paths with the water as a catalyst, replacing bad chi with good chi and helping to speed up or completely heal the recovery." Katara finished, recalling what she had learned in the healing classes during her time at the Northern Water Tribe.

Luffy appeared to be listening to her very intently the whole time, nodding his head at her statements and looking very focused. Once she had ended, he spoke up: "So it's mystery water, right?"

She looked up at him and blinked, slightly puzzled by this random quote. Hadn't she just explained the mechanics of this whole deal in simple terms? She had thought so. So why did Luffy call it 'mystery water', of all things?

Actually, if she remembered correctly, Luffy called her bending 'mystery powers' once. She wondered if he calls anything that was foreign to him a 'mystery', she shortly mused. She tried to explain again.

"Uh, no, it's not "mystery water", it's-" She began, attempting to rephrase her previous outline, but stopped short once she noticed a bloody stain on Luffy's shirt. "Luffy! You're hurt!"She exclaimed, staring at the aforementioned stain.

"Huh?" Luffy responded, following Katara's gaze and apparently noticing that he was bleeding for the first time. "Wha-! I'm bleeding!" He yelled, jumping from surprise and really, truly noticing the wound for the first time.

"H-hold still, Luffy! I'm going to help you!" Katara responded, bending back the water onto her palms and placing them on top of Luffy's sword wound once he stopped fidgeting around.

She began this new session as always, locating the chi lines beneath the injury and directing the energy as need be- only this time something strange came up. Katara's brow furrowed as she attempted to perform her healing act as always, but something was- off. It was as though the chi wasn't where it should have been, and while she could partially help Luffy by stopping the bleeding and somewhat closing the wound, she couldn't give him the proper treatment that was needed.

Pulling back the water, she stared at her half-done work. She knew all the chi paths of the body, had studied them closely, and was well-versed in the physical acts of healing and the many techniques associated with it, but then- why couldn't she help Luffy? It wasn't even a deep cut. It should have been a rather quick job requiring maybe another one session for the whole thing to be fully complete and forgotten about, but this- this was just peculiar by all means of the word.

"Hey, it stopped bleeding! Thanks Katara!" He grinned, apparently satisfied where Katara was not. "I'm gonna go finish with that bastard now, don't get hurt anymore!" He mentioned as he turned to run off, and only after a few moment's silence did she realize that by "That bastard" Luffy probably meant Zoro, who he had accused of being ungrateful before her lone fight with the two agents began.

Realizing that they might be having a serious, deadly battle going on right now, Katara attempted to follow her captain- only to have a rather painful reminder in her back tell her that she had forgotten to heal that injury. Groaning in displeasure at being stalled, she placed her hands over the pain and gave herself a quick session before getting up and running off in the direction she had seen Luffy vanish, attempting to find him.

While she wandered, collecting liquid as before, a sudden thought struck her mind- Luffy had saved her from Mr. 5 while he was still fighting. He purposefully ignored his own battle to come to her aid. Katara stopped in her tracks, thinking over this realization. Why would he do that? Because she was his new crewmate? Katara recalled what Nami had said earlier on the way to this island, about everyone being good friends towards each other not matter what and always aiding their nakama in times of need. It was that aid that Luffy gave to her, not exactly towards Zoro at this moment.

She shook her head. Loose thoughts and all were good to have, but right now, she had to find her captain and his swordsman, running off in pursuit once more. And yet, this little winding thought refused to leave, sticking itself upfront in her conscious and drawing part of her focus onto it. Because she was his friend, Luffy would go out of his way to ensure her safety, her life…it was rather touching. It was like being with the Gaang again, not quite the same but close, surrounded by people who gave to you and you gave back too in return.

Yes, Katara decided, she would also go out of her way to help these people, till the day they parted. But then, another thought hit her- when was she going to leave them? And could she? The war, there was the war! There were her friends who needed her, the Fire Lord, the Comet! The Avatar and the fate of the whole world! She had expected this journey for her to be short, but judging by the looks of it, the pact with Igaram and this secret organization out to kill Princess Vivi, whom they had agreed to protect, it seemed that that notion was quickly turning false. What was she going to do? What if her comrades a world away are already engaging in their own battle, assuming that time runs differently there from here? What if…what if they were losing?

Katara paused once more, staring with wide eyes at the ground, unable to get the macabre thinking out of her mind. It gave her a chill, imagining this gruesome fate without her being able to do anything to avert it, anything at all. She was stuck here, far, far away with no hope of ever getting home. How was she able to know what was occurring on her home planet? She couldn't! Unless, she thought, she could get in contact with that mysterious serpentine dragon that had appeared in her dream, who had spoken only a cryptic apology and left as soon as it came. Would it know something of what was going on?

She would have stayed in her place longer had Zoro not suddenly appeared in front her, engaged with Luffy in a vicious brawl. She snapped out of her drifting mind and jumped out of the way as Luffy's fist appeared, slamming into Zoro's defensive sword stance and sending him skidding across the hard earth.

_'Luffy, Zoro! They're not done yet!'_ She frantically thought, watching as Zoro delivered a well-aimed slash that Luffy's head barely avoided but still managed to cut his shoulder. Luffy responded with a similarly aimed kick, which met Zoro's ready sword in a fast-paced impact that generated a small shockwave.

Katara stared at the two, their fighting and likewise ignoring of her presence, before coming up with a quick idea with which to quell them both. As the two warrior's quarrel caused them to damage many nearby barrels and spill their contents all over, she collected these spilled contents from the ground and added them to her current amount. She continued to perform this task until she had two large blobs floating before her, after which she waited for the right moment. Once Luffy and Zoro stalled in preparation for their next attacks against one another, Katara used this moment to her advantage and bended the liquid to engulf them both, freezing them solid on the spot.

"Now then, have you two cooled off enough?" She asked, her voice taking on an authoritative tone as she walked over to the poised Luffy and Zoro, both of whom were fully aware of their current situation and attempted to speak through gritted teeth, however unable to produce anything more than muffled sounds.

"You two are friends! Nakama! Can't you just talk to each other before you start fighting?" She continued, this time sounding exasperated, making eye contact with her captain and the swordsman as they moved their eyes to stare- or glare, if they had been able to move their brows as well- at her. And Katara would have continued her reprimanding, had Nami not quietly appeared behind her, gently nudged her out of the way and approached the two frozen men.

She stood in front of the captives, staring with an expression-less face at their still forms and listening to their muffled cries. And then, in one quick swoop, her two fists formed and collided with the ice, utterly shattering the prisons and hitting both Luffy and Zoro square in their cheeks.

"You idiots!"She roared, sending a second hit flying and pummeling them both into the ground. "Your stupid fight almost hurt the Princess! We could have lost One Billion Beri!" She snarled, standing over their beaten selves with her hands on her hips.

Katara's eyes widened and gulped at the violent display. Never, _ever_ get on Nami's bad side, for she brought all the fury of hell with her when she got angry.

Nami now turned to Katara, and with a sudden change of demeanor cheerfully said: "I know you were trying to help, but sometimes, _this_ is the only language they'll understand." She smiled, "this language" being illustrated with her fist. "By the way, here's something I snatched for you from one of knocked out bounty hunters. Thought you'd need it." She mentioned, removing something that was slung over her shoulder and throwing it to Katara, who swiftly caught it. It was an empty canteen, a large one to boot, perfect for storing water on the go when there would be none around otherwise.

"Wow…thanks!"Katara beamed, relived to have some sort of liquid storage on her person.

"Don't mention it." Nami shrugged, as Luffy and Zoro pulled themselves out of their holes, and, upon sighting one another, immediately resumed their dog fight. With another groan from Nami, they each found themselves lying on the ground with a total of three painful bumps on their scalps, deciding not to start their feud again while she was around.

"Now then, Ms. Princess, we'd like to have a word with you." Nami said to Vivi, who had appeared on Carue from behind some buildings just as Nami delivered the final blow to her friends.

* * *

They each made themselves comfortable on some nearby crates, and for the first few minutes Luffy was relayed the situation that he had slept through, being told that the charitable people who gave them such a warm welcome were in fact disguised bounty hunters who were out for the 30 million on his head.

This he appeared to understand. "Oh! Well why didn't you tell me earlier?" He laughed, as if he would actually listen earlier. "I thought you hurt them because they didn't give you what you wanted to eat."

"Don't compare me to you!" Zoro yelled back, fuming with anger as a result of the misunderstood fight.

"I thank you for saving mine and Carue's lives. But the One Billion-I'm afraid that's impossible." Vivi intervened, now that that argument had been settled.

"Why? Aren't you a Princess? It's just a billion." Nami asked. Katara looked at her with disapproving narrowed eyes and wondered how she could make "just a billion" appear to be a small sum.

"Yes, but you see..." Vivi began, and then thought for a moment before restarting her sentence. "Do you know of Alabasta?"

"No, I haven't heard of it." Nami responded.

"It used to be the most peaceful and civilized nation in all of the Grand Line." Vivi explained, hinting on sadness.

"Used to?" Katara asked, feeling a sense of Deja Vu appear, as if she had heard something like this before, somewhere.

"Yes. During the last 2-3 years, the citizens began to stir up trouble. Then one day, I heard about an underground organization called "Baroque's Work." I found out that our people were being manipulated by this organization. But at that time, I didn't know anything else, so I could do nothing. I asked Igaram, the man who helped raise me from childhood, to aid me."

"You mean that old guy with the curls in his hair?" Luffy interrupted, his hands cupped near his head as if holding onto something cylindrical to demonstrate his point.

"Yes, him. We decided upon joining Baroque Works to find out some of its secrets, who's in charge of this whole thing, and what the main purpose is." Vivi laid out.

"Isn't the main purpose of Baroque's Work to build a dream country? Your Guard explained that to me." Nami added, starting to get confused.

"He did? When?" Katara suddenly asked with interest, not recalling such a conversation when she, Zoro and Nami had agreed to take on the job of bodyguards.

"When you two were off fighting." Nami casually explained in an off-handed manner.

"That's what it's believed to be." Vivi continued. "The Boss uses the words "Dream Country" to play on his subordinates desires and control them. But the true goal of Baroque's Work is to conquer all of Alabasta. I must warn everyone in my country, because if I can't stop them, we will all fall for Baroque Work's plan." She warned.

And that was when it hit her. Katara understood her sense of Deja vu now. She remembered when Aang had been shown a series of past experiences by his past life, Avatar Roku, in a dream-state. When he had awakened, he had explained all he had seen and heard to his friends, her included. Among them, Aang had told of how Fire Lord Sozin saw his country, the Fire Nation, as the most advanced, the most civilized land in the world. The rest of the planet was inferior in his eyes, it had to be changed, changed to fit his outlook and desires. He was convinced that it would have been for the betterment of all peoples to have it be brought up to speed with the industrial Fire Nation, to showcase this marvelous new technology to all and have it improve the living conditions of all nations. It would have been a- a dream world.

Although Avatar Roku had strictly denied this plan, as it went against his spiritual and earthly duties, and had gone so far as to terminate his brother-like friendship with Sozin over this disagreement, once Avatar Roku had fallen from power- and consequently, life itself- the Fire Lord of the time found himself undeterred and free now with the removal of this final restraint. Putting the plan into action, he fired the legendary comet into the skies and with its power eliminated the peaceful Airbenders, with hopes of destroying the next reincarnation of the Avatar along with them.

He had failed. The new Avatar eluded him. But it didn't matter anymore. With the Airbenders gone and the comet fired, a war had sprung up across the world, the Fire Nation pitted against the Earth Kingdom and the Water Tribes. With the Avatar lost, there was no one to keep the balance from tipping over. No one to stop the war from progressing. No one to stop Sozin's plan of a Dream world rising out of a sea of blood and and a parched earth.

And here, a world away, the very same thing was about to occur. In a nation somewhere out in this deadly sea a civil war was about to erupt, a mirroring of the condition on her home earth.

Katara's previous thoughts returned. All her dread over her companions, her friends and family- what was she to do? She must return to her own world, she knew that- but she couldn't just ignore this one now that she knew just how heavy the situation was. She had promised to protect a princess, and now an entire nation- she was at a loss. She couldn't turn her back on either planet, but she couldn't tear herself in two as well. And while she had no method of returning to her homeland, the only thing she could do was stay here until the moment of parting arose.

'_Sorry everybody'_, She thought to the heavens, thinking of her brother Sokka, her friends Aang, Toph, Suki, Appa, Momo- even Zuko. _'And I'm sorry, Aang. But there's nothing I can do for you now. Please understand that'._

She will attempt to locate that spirit. She _will_. But for now, she had to turn her sights to another war, another country. She just hoped it would end soon.

"I understand." Nami spoke in hushed voice after a moment's silence. "A distressed nation like that won't have a lot of money."

"So... who's the boss?" Asked Luffy, more interested in that matter.

"The Boss? You can't know that!" Vivi began in alarm. "I can't tell you that because it could kill you!"

"Oh! Ha ha ha ha! Well, that's good then. The one out to conquer a nation should be a very despicable person, correct?" Nami said with a highly uncomfortable laugh.

"That's right." Vivi agreed, nodding furiously. "Because no matter how good you are, you're not on par with "Crocodile", one of the Seven Pirate Warlords."

At the very moment she spoke those words, all color vanished from their faces and their jaws collapsed, save for Zoro, who bemoaned: "Didn't you just say the name?"

A loud thump. Everyone looked to their side to see two creatures standing on a rooftop, staring down at them through sunglasses. To Katara, who had never seen such creatures, she could only imagine what they could be. One of them looked like an Otter-Penguin or a Koala-Otter, but it... wasn't. The other seemed to be a Buzzard-Wasp, but it had feathers like a bird. And the Koala/Penguin-Otter thing looked like it was wearing some kind of spotted jumpsuit.

She blinked. There was silence.

The two things looked at each other, then the thing with the suit jumped on the feathered Buzzard-Wasp and the pair flew off.

More silence.

"What was with that Otter and Vulture?" Nami screamed, holding Vivi by the scruff of her shirt as Vivi cried from her mistake. "Did they go to that Boss to tell him we know his secret? TELL ME." She growled, and Katara safely scooted away from them, wondering what in this world a by-itself "Otter" and a "Vulture" were.

"I'm sorry!" She bawled. "I didn't mean to tell you!"

"That's all you can say?"Nami roared, shaking Vivi out of sheer rage. "Why did only one word give us so much trouble?"

She released her grip on the princess and turned, wiping the newly-formed tears from eyes. "We only just came to Grand Line, and a Pirate Warlord already wants us dead." She sobbed.

Katara didn't know how she could comfort her, especially when she felt like she could use some comfort herself. Whatever a Pirate Warlord is, it was onto them, and the thought by itself was pretty terrifying. And judging by Nami's and Vivi's reactions, said Warlord had quite a reputation as well.

'_Oh, joy.' _thought Katara scornfully. It was like being chased by Combustion Man all over again, you turn a corner and an explosion hits you in the face.

Zoro and Luffy didn't seem to be fazed by this one bit, on the complete, opposite other hand. In fact, they seemed to rather enjoy this new-found infamy.

"I'd never thought we'd meet one this early." Zoro grinned. "We're quite lucky."

"Lucky?"Katara practically shrieked. "How is this lucky? What if we get killed?"

"Then we get killed." Zoro stated simply, executing his wonderful logic. Katara's jaw almost dropped. She would've almost face-palmed as well.

"I wonder what kind of guy is he?" Luffy wondered.

"A bad guy." Katara moaned, hiding her face in her hands. Luffy frowned.

"Hmm, I guess he is." He replied, cupping his chin in thought, as though such an obvious answer required thinking.

Nami had by this point stopped sobbing and turned to leave. "Thank you for everything you've done even if it was for a short period of time." She spoke from behind her back.

"Where are you going, Nami?" Luffy called after her.

"He doesn't know my face yet, so I'd better escape while I have the chance." She explained, only to stop short once she saw that mysterious Otter in front of her once again, scribbling something onto a pad of paper. Once he had finished, he spun the pad around to showcase the photo-realistic rendition of her portrait, as well as those of Luffy, Zoro, Vivi and Katara.

"Wow, you're great!" Nami complimented out of honesty, and turned on her heel back to the four she had left behind.

"Now I can't run away!" She exclaimed.

"I'm sorry." Vivi muttered.

"That Otter is very interesting." Luffy mentioned.

"Where do you think you would've gone, anyway?" Zoro said, as more of a statement then an actual question.

"What's an Otter? Is it like an Otter-Penguin or a Koala-Otter?" Katara asked out of curiosity, but ended up receiving only blank stares in return, even from Luffy. She blinked and sheepishly looked down. She didn't say anything after that.

"So this means we're in Baroque's Work blacklist now." Zoro changed the subject, getting excited over the ideas of hot-blooded adventure and sword-fights yet to come. Luffy agreed, already pumped over pretty much the same idea sans the sword-fights. Nami had by now curled up next to a wall, utterly depressed at this turn of events and Vivi was attempting to comfort her by offering the 500,000 beli she had in her account at the moment. It didn't help much.

"Don't worry, everyone!" A new voice announced, and everyone turned around to see Igaram, still bruised but back on his feet- and dressed entirely in a manner identical to Vivi, holding onto four dummies.

"_Ahem_-mi mi miiii! Everything is under control! I have a plan!" said the weirdly dressed Igaram.

Katara and the gang stared at him in bewilderment.

'_Uh…okay…' _Katara thought in uncertainty.

"Igaram? What are you doing dressed like that!" Vivi questioned in bafflement.

"Wow! You look great, Mister!" said an enthusiastic Luffy.

"Good grief…these people are insane…" muttered Nami in the same spot near the wall.

"Thank you. Now, listen everybody! Now that you are all wanted by Baroque Works, they'll send someone after you! Especially since you defeated Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine! But there is also something else you should know. Right now there is no bounty on The Boss, even thought he is one of the Seven Pirate Warlords of the Sea. But Crocodile once had a bounty worth 80 million beri on his head!

"WHAT! THAT'S FOUR TIMES MORE THAN ARLONG'S WAS WORTH!" Nami shrieked.

Katara looked at Nami. "Arlong?" she said in confusion.

"I'll tell you later. WHATEVER YOU DO LUFFY, TURN IT DOWN!" Nami yelled, but was, of course, ignored.

"Now, about escorting the Princess…" Igaram started.

"Escorting?" Luffy asked in confusion.

"He wants us to bring her home." Zoro jerked his thumb at Vivi.

"Oh. Okay." Luffy said in simple acceptance.

Nami once again cried near her wall. Katara just sighed miserably.

'_Well, here you are in another dangerous adventure, Katara…' _Katara thought to herself.

Igaram turned to Vivi. "Princess, I want you to give me your Eternal Pose to Alabasta."

Vivi eyes widened and hesitantly fished out of her pocket an hourglass looking compass; the Eternal Pose, and gave it to Igaram.

"Huh? Eternal Pose? What's that?" Nami sniffled.

"You don't know?" Igaram said in slight shock. "Well, simply put, it's a permanent Log Pose. A Log Pose leads you to one island to the next on the Grand Line. But a Eternal Pose remembers only one location forever. No matter where you sail, it always leads to the same island." Igaram showed the object in his hand. "This is our Eternal Pose. It's magnetic coordinates of Alabasta are recorded into it."

"I've disguised myself as you Princess Vivi, and I'm going to set out for Alabasta with dummies of these four. While I divert Baroque Works attention, you must go with these people on their ship and sail to our kingdom by the usual route. I've never gone that way, but Alabasta should be only two or three islands from here." Igaram narrowed his eyes intently at Vivi. "Princess Vivi…may we meet again in our homeland."

Vivi looked at her Guard with a tender smile and nodded.

Igaram then turned to Katara and said. "Katara, is it?"

Katara blinked and said, "Um…yes?"

"I give you and all of your friends my deepest apologies. We had to infiltrate and play the part in Baroque Works to know what their plan is. Please forgive us." Igaram said with a bow.

Katara blinked again and looked over to her friends, only to shrug in return. Luffy grinned and laughed saying, "Hey, no worries! You two did what you all have to do!"

"Yeah, nothing to get all formal about." Zoro smirked.

Nami sighed then smirked. "Ditto."

Katara smiled at her crewmates. She turned to Igaram and said sincerely, "Mr. Igaram, I forgive you and Vivi. And we'll take her to Alabasta. We promise you that."

Vivi and Igaram smiled as well. "Thank you all." said Igaram. He then turned serious and said to Katara. "You have a unique power. Do not let yourself be captured by wrong hands." He said gravely.

Katara looked at Igaram with widened eyes of understanding and nodded.

Luffy, with a puzzled look, glanced at Zoro, who seemed to have understood what the Guard had said. Nami also looked like she understood what Igaram was saying as well, thinking about the dreaded possibilities of somebody using Katara's waterbending for their own deeds. She almost shivered at that thought. When she thinks about it, they all have to watch over two people who are in need of help.

* * *

"Please take care of the Princess." Igaram said as he was about to board on his ship.

"Sure thing, Mister!" Luffy said.

They were all out on the Whiskey Peak shore where Igaram docked his ship. He looked at Vivi one more time with a warm smile and said, "My Princess, it will be a difficult journey. But I know you will be strong. Please be careful."

Vivi nodded with warm smile herself. "You too, Igaram."

"We shall meet again." Igaram said and gave her one last smile until he boarded onto his ship, with the four dummies in it as well. He sailed off into the distance, the ship dotting off.

Katara, moved by their farewell, watched the scene with encouraged eyes. With newfound courage and ambition, she, along with Luffy and his crew will bring Vivi back to Alabasta and help her save her country.

Luffy laughed. "Well, he's gone. He was laugh until the very end."

"He was a weird fella." Zoro smirked.

"He may not look it, but he's very reliable." Vivi said.

Katara and Nami smiled at the Princess and looked back at the ship...

_**BOOOOOOOOOM!**_

Everyone froze…and looked in shock at the sudden inferno in the distance where Igaram's ship used to be…

Katara put her hands to her mouth, eyes widened in horror. Nami's eyes widen in the same expression. Luffy and Zoro gazed on at the flames.

"It…it can't be! They already got to him!" Nami exclaimed in shock.

"HEY! THAT'S NOT FAIR! I LIKED THAT GUY!" Luffy exclaimed angrily.

Katara turned to Vivi in hopes of trying to comfort her, but she couldn't find any words to say. She didn't know how to comfort someone who's just seen somebody close to the person being decimated in front of their eyes.

That is, until she saw how Vivi was standing rigid, shaking, and biting her bottom lip so hard that a trickle of blood came trailing down. Katara slightly gasped. Vivi was trying to be strong on not breaking down. She could see it in her eyes that she was holding back tears. Katara did the only thing that she thought was the appropriate thing to do. She hugged Vivi.

'_She really is a strong girl…' _Katara thought solemnly. Vivi didn't move from her spot, but didn't pull back either.

Katara heard some yelling in the background, something about the Log Pose being set, and them preparing to set sail. She saw that Nami was coming over to where she and Vivi were.

"Princess Vivi, we have to get-" Nami stopped to witness the tender moment of the hugged exchange and she too looked sympathetic. She came over to Vivi's right side and put a comforting hand on Vivi's shoulder and said, "It's alright…we'll get you to Alabasta! Don't worry."

"That's right." said a reassuring Katara who let go of her hug.

"Yeah! No need to fret! Those four saved the East Blue all by themselves!" Nami also reassured Vivi.

Katara didn't hear about that. Maybe when they all set sail and get out of here, she'll ask how they did.

"Baroque Works? Ha! The Seven Warlords of the Sea? Please, no problem! They can take care of any nuisance like that! You better believe it!" Nami said in optimistic, supportive words that even Katara would be proud.

Vivi slowly nodded, keeping her composure in check. She then said, "Let's go."

Nami and Katara nodded as all three of them ran off into the direction where the _Merry_ is docked.

* * *

And so they ran.

Luffy and Zoro had gone off to finish their own sort of business; from what Katara could overhear, Zoro had left to raise anchor and Luffy to collect the still-slumbering Sanji and Usopp. Along the girl's way, their own, Vivi was looking worried- understandable when she had just witnessed what could have been the final moments of her most trusted friend, before his ship erupted into flames.

But she was also looking around, pausing to peer down streets and alleys as though she was worried over and searching for something that was still presumably alive.

"What's the matter?" Nami called back as she slowed her pace, Katara following suit.

"It's Carue! I can't find him anywhere!" Vivi replied, sharing her wonders onto where her flightless bird companion could have run off to for the past ten minutes or so. "Have either of you seen him?" She asked.

"No." Nami and Katara voiced in unison, neither having seen Vivi's mount for a similar time span- neither of them particularly caring about it when Vivi was explaining the details of her inclusion into Baroque's Work, as her story was far more important at that time.

Vivi frowned, as this situation took a turn for the worse. She quickly put two fingers into her mouth and gave forth a sharp whistle, one that gave Nami and Katara quite a scare as they had not expected the rapid action.

"What was that?" Katara exclaimed when Vivi had finished, and only the piercing sound throbbing in her ears remained, no matter how tightly she pressed her hands against them in hopes of quieting it.

"It's for Carue. It's how I call him to me." She explained, looking right and left down the street for any sign of the steed.

Silence followed afterward. When no reply, either visible or audible, was received, Vivi grew even more worried, and gave another calling whistle, this one more desperate. No reply the second time around, either.

A third, fourth. Nothing. She gave up after the fifth, seeing as it was little more then pointless waste of breath at this point. Nami and Katara, who had both waited patiently for Vivi, found themselves staring out at the docks, anticipating their departure and silently demanding an end to this pointless whistling.

The princess took a deep breath, and, along with the other two, resumed her run towards the _Going Merry_, hoping to attempt her calls once again as soon as she arrived by the ship. There was no need in keeping them standing in the middle of a street, anyway.

"Alright, as soon as we get to the ship we sail off." Nami huffed, her orders countering Vivi's intentions. The princess did not let this go unspoken.

"But I'll need to try and call Caruie again!" Vivi yelled in response.

"You just did that! He didn't come!" Nami argued.

"Maybe he didn't hear me properly!" She countered.

"After five of those? Maybe he just doesn't want to come." Nami considered.

"Of course not! Caruie is very brave and loyal, he wouldn't do something like that!" Vivi fumed, somewhat taken aback by Nami's rude comment that her companion may have betrayed her.

"Uh, we've reached the ship." Katara pointed out, as they were indeed standing in front of the _Merry,_ were Zoro was dealing with the anchor. Nami and Vivi, though they slowed down, did not seem to take much notice otherwise.

"We can't search for him right now! Those hunters could come too at any moment, and that organization of yours could send more agents to us right now!" Nami explained, firmly against the idea of spending more time within this island. She'd had enough of its murderous attempts at her crew's heads, and there weren't many items of value to steal either, having Nami lose every bit of her interest in this place.

"But I can't leave him here!" retaliated Vivi.

"What happened?" asked Zoro, catching the last bits of the conversation after having finished up the raising.

"Carue vanished, so she wants to whistle and search for him." Nami told him.

"You mean this duck? He was here before me." Zoro said, pointing to Carue beside him who gave a re-affirmative _Quack! _at the three on the pier.

"_So you were there all along?"_ Nami and Vivi hissed, furious at the fact that they had just spent the last few minutes arguing and worrying over his-self, bounding up the plank onto _Merry's _deck in order to smack the duck upside his bill, while Katara breathed a sigh of relief. At least that problem was taken care of.

Luffy, meanwhile, had dragged in a bleeding Usopp and Sanji from somewhere, apparently having dragged them across the ground all the way from the tavern to the pier. They were lying still in Luffy's grasp and he, believing that they were still asleep, gave a shrug and used his elastic arms to toss his cook and repairman right beside where Vivi and Nami were standing over a quivering Carue, wings folded over two bumps on his head, before jumping aboard to join them.

Only Katara had not yet boarded, looking off to the side where the bounty hunters were beginning to stir. One of the things that had caught her interest was the fact that beside one such hunter there was a flask identical to the one she had slung over her shoulder lying on the ground, and although she was no thief, she couldn't help but desire a second canteen (she really had no qualms about stealing from a person who attempted to do her harm- the loss of his flask was but a small price to pay). During her travels in her home planet, she always had two skins strapped onto her back, and had become used to having two sources of traveling water with her wherever she went, as a double amount was far more useful in battle than a single one.

"Katara! Get on!" She heard her companions cry as _Merry _began to float away, the distance widening between them. She stared back at Nami, Luffy and Zoro as they peered over the railing at her, then glanced over to the canteen that had stolen her thoughts. She made up her mind.

With a quick wave of her arms towards herself, the flask, half-filled with some alcoholic beverage that Katara would clean out later (never again would she drink- in hindsight, it almost took her life!) appeared to levitate off the ground and float over to Katara, who grabbed and slung the the item over her other shoulder, now possessing two water stores.

"Woah!" Luffy cried, amazed at the floating flask. "How'd you do _that, _Katara?" He cried.

"She bended the ale in the flask, idiot." Nami reasoned, coming to the conclusion rather easily.

"How're you gonna get back here, Katara? Or do you want us to leave you there?"

Katara shot Zoro a mean look at his snide remarks, and he shrugged. With a small smirk, she jumped off the pier, bound straight for the ocean. Positive that her friends were watching, she, upon making contact with the surface of the sea, froze over the water instantly where her feet landed, and using these sorts of miniature foot-stands she ran the small gap between the docks and the _Going Merry_. Once she was beside _Merry's _hull, she quickly spun once in her place to form a water spout and use it to ride over the rails and onto the deck, landing with a small spray of saltwater before her crew.

Luffy gave a small laugh and clapped at the display, Nami and Vivi were obviously impressed while Zoro just gave a curt nod. Katara took that as a sign of approval and smiled.

_'Oh, yeah. Still got it!' _Katara thought proudly.

A little way off, were Igaram's ship had been blown apart, a lone figure on some sort of circular, buoyant ship-or-other watched _Merry_ as she sailed off, her own craft bobbing through the flames and floating dummies after the departing ship.

"Using a substitute? How stupid." She muttered to herself, and smiled.

* * *

By this time, Sanji and Usopp were now up and about, complaining about their sudden departure from Whiskey Peak.

"Why did we have to leave? Why can't we be here for one more night, the girls are so lovely here!" Sanji whined, remembering the heaven he had been thrust into earlier this same night.

"He's right! I don't think we'll ever find another town like this! Let's enjoy our stay some more! Besides, it's not even morning yet!" chimed in Usopp, of a similar mindset.

"You'll explain the situation?" Zoro glanced towards Nami, who smirked while cracking her knuckles.

"Yep." She cooed, and within the next minute Usopp and Sanji were once more lying on the deck of _Merry, _this time witha few bumps on their heads.

A mist had begun to rise, which Katara cleared from _Merry's _path with a simple wave of her hand. Vivi, who was closest to her at that point, seemed surprised.

"You can even control mist?" She asked, wide-eyed. Katara nodded.

"Mist and steam are all water, right? It's the same thing." She explained, waving away the mist some more as the sky began to lighten with the approaching dawn. "If I move the mist, we won't have to worry about hitting the rocks ahead."

"That's very handy, Water-chan." Spoke a new, cool voice that had never before been heard by any of the crew. Sure enough, on the rails of the upper deck, there sat a strange woman in rather revealing clothing and a western hat, with a log pose strapped onto the upper arm of her left hand, smirking lightly at the surprised people below. "Nice ship you have here." She added, glancing around the _Merry. _

"Who's that?" Zoro exclaimed, hand held near his swords in preparation for an attack. Everyone else, save Luffy, merely gawked at the intruder, but Vivi appeared the most shaken of all, already beginning to sweat.

"I just met Mr. 8, Ms. Wednesday." The mystery woman teased, her cool voice now glazed with a very faint poison.

"Y-you killed Igaram..." Vivi stuttered quietly, hardly being able to speak properly. Luffy had other complaints on his mind, however.

"Hey! Who let you get on the ship?" He yelled, since being the Captain came with such regulating duties that he decided to implement at this time. "Why are you here?"

"Ms. All-Sunday." Vivi said, still appearing petrified, revealing the name of the Vice-Captain of Baroque Works to the Strawhats.

"You know? Then who is she? Where is her partner?" Nami asked, gazing around the deck as though said partner was hiding behind the main beam or between the boards.

"Mr. 0... She is the Boss's partner, and the only one who knows about him. I followed her, which is how I learned about him too." Vivi explained, and Ms. All-Sunday gave a sickeningly sweet sarcastic smile, finding the girl's talk to be, in a way, cute.

"Actually, I just let you follow me." She corrected, without budging.

"So she's a nice person?" Luffy asked, attempting to file the new-comer into his simplistic mental categorizing system of "Bad" or "Good".

"I know that. You told the Boss about me too, didn't you?" She shot back, ignoring Luffy.

"Oh, so she's a bad person then." He said to himself, apparently deciding on the category.

"What do you want from me?" Vivi yelled.

"I thought you worked hard, so I decided to help you out." Ms. All-Sunday explained, not giving any real care in the world. "However,-" Here she began to glower, "- the Princess who wants to save her country and become Baroque's Work's enemy is a very stupid thing."

That was the last straw, most of the Strawhats decided, as Zoro had drawn his swords, Sanji and Usopp had already appeared on either side of the agent and Katara had already collected water and was locked in a stance.

"You're doing this because you have to do what you have to do, no?" Usopp asked Sanji on the other side, having drawn and loaded his slingshot right on target- the target being Ms. All-Sunday's head. Sanji had with him a pistol, also pointing dead-center at the agent, albeit with a shaking hand.

"No. But it looks like this woman is a danger towards my beloved Ms. Wednesday, I can't let her live now." He replied, although it was fairly obvious from his hold on the gun that he wasn't prepared to eliminate a female.

Ms. All-Sunday let out a sigh. "Those things are dangerous." She chastised, as both men found themselves suddenly losing balance and falling over the railings. Katara, to her mighty shock, shrieked when she found what looked like female arms growing out of her torso and grasping onto _her _arms with a surprisingly strong grip, locking them in place by her sides which caused her stance to be disrupted and the water to splash all over the deck.

Everyone gawked at Ms. All-Sunday's display of her fruit power while Sanji and Usopp collapsed to the floor. Sanji got up almost immediately, staring at the agent with one heart-shaped eye, now marveling at her power and beauty. She ignored him.

"Calm down, I don't have any orders, so there is no reason to start fighting." She explained, using her power to grow an arm out of Luffy's neck, remove the hat from his head and toss it over to herself before having the limb vanish in a breeze of petals.

"And you're the Captain, Monkey D. Luffy." She stated, placing the Straw hat over her own cowgirl hat for some unexplained, odd reason, perhaps being nothing more than a simple tease. Luffy was by far not pleased with this.

"Gimme my hat back! You wanna fight?" He snarled, and a terrified Usopp taunted her from his hiding place behind the main beam, screaming, "Why don't you just come and get it now?". She ignored him, as well.

"You are all very unlucky. You, Captain, for helping an enemy of Baroque Works, and you, Princess, for having such a handful of allies." She said. "But the worst is where you are headed next. Your next landing site is Little Garden. We don't have much to do there, but... it's possible you won't make it to your home country. All of you will vanish from this world before you even get to see Crocodile's face."

"You think that's what'll happen to us? Dream on! We'll make it there! And gimme my hat!" Luffy pressed, further infuriated. Ms. All-Sunday silently complied, smiling all the while, as another arm formed on her shoulder and tossed the Straw hat back to its owner.

"Oh please. Anyone can boast. There will be many dangers ahead, and you are still intent of reaching your goal? Either you are full of false ideals, or you are truly insane."

Another hand tossed something to Vivi, who swiftly caught the thing- an Eternal Post, locked onto Alabasta. She looked it over in surprise.

"With that, you may overcome the dangers. Our Boss himself doesn't know the proper route, so we will not be able to follow you."

"So wait, she is a good person?" Nami asked in Luffy's fashion.

"Maybe it's a trap." Decided Zoro.

"I'll let you decide that." Ms. All-Sunday said.

At this point, the still-bound Katara became confused- why was this supposed enemy helping them? As typical logic states, your enemies are those who consider you a threat and obstacle in their lives, and as such utilize all means towards any sort of method of elimination. Not even mentioning that this woman was already a strange one- boarding unannounced, uncaring onto an enemy ship and discussing life or death matters in a casual tone, she was offering them extremely helpful aid. This was already a signal that there were ulterior motives working about. But of what sort?

Katara was interrupted from her thoughts by a shout, and she looked up to see that apparently, Luffy had snatched the Log Pose from Vivi and had... broken it?

"**You idiot!" **Nami roared, smacking Luffy's face around with her heels as an answer to his action. If Katara was able to move, she probably would have struck him too. "She just gave us an easy method, and you destroyed it! If she's helping us, we just lost a huge chance!" She screamed, pointing at the agent.

"No!" Luffy shouted, ignoring Nami and staring Ms. All-Sunday right in the eye. "You won't decide our route for us! That's not your choice!" He explained, angered at the intention this woman had to deny him freedom of travel and likewise, adventure.

"Is that so?" Ms. All-Sunday smiled, even more amused. "I don't mind people with great spirits like you. If we are lucky, we'll meet again."

"Who wants to meet you again?" Luffy stated, but was paid little mind towards.

"I'll be leaving now, but first, you-" Here another arm formed from Katara's abdomen, which pointed straight at her face, to better acknowledge that it was she who was the recipient of this next message. "-should better watch yourself. Don't do stupid things."

Ms. All-Sunday had, by this time, jumped onto the back of a giant turtle in a similar western hat and smoking a cigarette, who was apparently her boat. Only Luffy appeared surprised at this, as everyone else was too busy attempting to make heads and tails out of this conversation.

With that last message given, all three limbs had vanished in a petal shower. Katara rubbed her aching arms, and frowned at the red hand-prints, mulling over the agent's words and connecting it to the Igaram's final words to herself. _'It seems that my waterbending is more special here than I thought. I really should watch my steps.' _She decided.

At this time, the sun had already come up and it was early morning. Luffy, going by the way of his eating routine, demanded breakfast from Sanji, who along with Usopp was more interested in knowing why Ms. Wednesday was now joining them on their ship once more. The first time they had wanted to know the reason, they were awarded with scalp pain. Now, as the island grew further and further away, the rest of the crew could easily explain the situation.

Sanji seemed disappointed, being unable to show off his fighting skills before the ladies. "But it matters not!" He announced, "There will be many chances in the future! I shall protect all the girls from danger!"

All three rolled their eyes heavenward.

"I am so lucky that I was asleep." said Usopp, on quite the opposite end of the spectrum then Sanji.

"Hey! When's it gonna snow again?" Luffy asked, staring at the sky for any sign of snow clouds.

"How can it snow here? It's too warm." Zoro said.

"You were asleep back when it happened." Katara pointed out.

"Really? Oh well." He mumbled.

"So when's the snow coming?" Luffy repeated, looking at everyone in turn to see who could reply. Only Vivi knew the answer.

"There'll be no more. The first sea is special, because 7 magnetic fields from 7 different islands caused it to become chaos. While that means that there will be far less freakish weather, it doesn't mean you are all safe. There will be many other dangers ahead, and you must all remember to not underestimate this ocean." She finished, only finding that neither Zoro nor Luffy were listening to her anymore, and had instead walked off to enjoy themselves on the deck and demand food from Sanji. Only Katara was left in her place, giving her a small, awkward smile.

"Thanks for telling us that, Vivi. It's very helpful of you." She complimented, and Vivi returned the favor.

"Who wants my special drink?" Sanji announced, running onto the deck with a platter full of the liquids. But when Luffy and Usopp ran up to him full speed, he swiftly kicked them into the railings. "Ladies first!" He barked, and bowing, offered the deserts to the two girls, who gingerly took on for their own.

"This is great!" Katara exclaimed, with Vivi in agreement. Overjoyed, Sanji ran to them males whirl-pool style, uncaring at who took what now that he had been complimented by two beauties.

"Is this alright?" Vivi asked Nami, who walked out of the kitchen with her own drink in hand, nodding towards the boys on the deck and their boisterous attitudes.

"There's nothing wrong with it. If something happens, we all work hard because no one want to die." Nami said.

"You may be correct, but they seem _too _happy." Vivi replied, recalling the last several events that all occurred within the past two hours or so, and then watching the boys discuss trivial things amongst themselves in their lighthearted fashion.

"That's true." Nami grinned. "Staying on this ship can make you stress-free, no?"

"I'll have to agree with that." Katara added.

Vivi sighed. Truth be told, she did feel somewhat relieved on this ship, and found that she could breath easy despite their situation. She sipped on her drink, and smiled.

"Hey, a dolphin." Sanji said, and everyone turned to indeed see a dolphin jump out of the water right next to the _Going Merry, _glistening in the morning sun.

It also had the proportions of a carrier plane, and appeared to have every intent of devouring them.

"Lets run away!" Luffy yelled, pumping his fist in the air as the Starwhat crew ran to their posts and the dolphin missed, colliding into the water and generating a huge wave bound straight towards their ship.

"Hold this." Katara told Vivi as she gave her her glass, eyeing the wave.

As soon as her hands were freed, she shifted into a stance and with a few quick arm movements and hand gestures sliced the wave in two, avoiding the danger.

"That's awesome!" Luffy grinned, having seen the whole affair. "Hey Katara! Can you make us go faster!" He called, and Katara smiled.

"Sure thing!" she said

Before long she was standing at the bow, rotating her arms and having the _Merry _cut through the sea, sped on by the power of her bending; With Nami standing beside her with her eyes on the Pose, keeping Katara on track. They were going far faster then they would have normally, Nami had said, and the whole crew was pleased by this, so even when Katara grew tired of the repeated motions the encouragement her friends gave her pushed her relentlessly forward. It all paid off when the outline and colors of Little Garden became visible by late noon, the bender being relieved of her work for the time being and giving her arms a much needed rest before the _Merry _landed.

"So this is the second island of the Grand Line." Nami mumbled, watching her set pose.

"We should be careful. I'm starting to worry about what Ms. All-Sunday told us." Vivi said as _Merry _had now arrived at the island and was flowing down a small strait that cut through the island itself.

"There will be monsters here, right?" Usopp gulped, already trembling.

"I can't tell. But we need to stock up on food, we couldn't get anything from the last town." Sanji explained.

Katara looked around at the scenery. It was a tropical forest, this she knew from experience, but it was still unlike one she had ever seen before. The plant-life was highly exotic and so were the various animals sounds coming forth from the vegetation.

"Eeek! Eeek!" Something cried from somewhere, and Nami gasped.

"What was that?" She squeaked, looking right-left for the source.

"You're so cute, Nami-san!" Sanji cooed, melting over Nami''s fearfulness. "Don't worry! It's just a bird! This place is only a forest, that's all!"

At that point, a large bird-like lizard creature flew by, leaving the crew is silence, even Katara, who had never seen such a large Reptile-Bird before.

A sudden boom resounded from the depths of the island, shaking the _Going Merry_.

"The sounded like a volcano! There aren't any volcanoes in normal forests!" Nami panicked, when she noticed what looked like a tiger (or a creature that somewhat resembled a Tiger-dillo, thought Katara) collapse, bleeding heavily from a side wound.

"Why is that tiger bleeding? This isn't even a forest! It's a jungle!" Nami pressed, even further disturbed.

"I decided that we will not go there." Usopp said, shaking his head. Katara was on the verge of agreement as she also nodded, her eyes widened.

"I'll stay here until the Log Post memorizes the magnetic frequencies of the next island, so we can get out of her as soon as possible. We have to hurry to Alabasta." Nami stated, not wishing to make any further move.

Luffy, however, was happy. Very happy. Staring far off into the distance beyond the trees and overgrowth, nearly falling overboard with how far he was leaning over the railings. "Sanji, get the lunch-box."

"Lunch-box?" Sanji repeated, slightly intrigued.

"Yes, a pirate's lunch-box." Here he took a deep breath, and then exhaled, giving an enormous grin.

"I smell the scent of an _ADVENTURE_!"

* * *

**Well, there you have it! FINALLY, RIGHT? I want to thank Simple Tactic for writing most of the chapter. I helped a little bit, but he basically did all the writing. So thanks buddy! :)**

**I hope this was worth the wait! Review as always! Hopefully we'll get this story back on track! :D**

**Also, if anyone of you are interested, try one of my 'One Piece/Naruto Crossover Challenges'! They are in my profile and I made two forums of them in the One Piece forums and Naruto forums! Please PM me if you are interested! Once you PM me about it, I'll give you the rules on what to do. :)**

**Till next time! ...Which I hope won't be longer than the last. D:**


	9. The Feuding Giants

**Heya! Well, here's the ninth chapter! :)**

**This chapter won't be longer than the last as I have a tight schedule on stories. I have to tend to those as well, people! :P **

**But yeah, thank you for reviewing! I hope to have more, encouraging feedback! :D**

**Also, as you may know, Simple Tactic(who is not a guy, she's a girl, so…sorry ST! D: ) will not be attending me on the story for now, as she has some things to sort out in her life. **

**But now I have a new collab partner now; shadowwriter329! Thanks so much for helping me out! :)**

**But I do want to say, that anything like names in One Piece sounds like it's mistranslated in it, it's because I'm using the English manga's that I bought in bookstores(SUPPORT THE OFFICIAL RELEASE PEOPLE!). So don't come complaining to me if it sounds weird to you, I'm just following along the manga I'm reading. :P**

**Also, very important announcement about this story at the end of this chapter. Don't worry it's not bad…well, kind of. You'll have to understand once I announce it. **

**Well, with all that said and done, here I go! Wish me luck! :)**

* * *

"I smell the scent of an _ADVENTURE_!" Luffy exclaimed with a big grin on his face.

Katara blinked at him oddly. After going through that ordeal on that Cactus Island, and that huge dolphin…thing, she thought he would be at _least_ tired. Also, from the looks of this place, it might be dangerous to go on this said adventure all by himself.

"Now wait a minute, you!" Nami scolded at Luffy. "You're not doing what I think you're doing, are you?"

Luffy grinned wider. "Hehe! Yep! Going on an adventure! Wanna come?"

"NO!"

"Oh, okay then. SANJI! MY LUNCHBOX!"

"Keep your hat on. I'm gonna fix it this instant." muttered Sanji as he walked into the kitchen.

"Wait Luffy!" Katara called out to him, who was bouncing with joy. "Are you sure you want to go out there alone?"

"Eh? Do you want to come?" Luffy asked.

"Me?" she said incredulously. "We don't know what kind of dangers are on this island!"

"Exactly!" Nami agreed. "We have to know what kind of wildlife lives here! Besides, we need to stay here for the Log Pose to set!

"Naw, I wanna explore!" Luffy said, his mind made up.

"Hey, um…can I come too?" Vivi said.

"WHAT? Not you too!" Nami said in shock.

"Yeah, yeah! Sure!" said Luffy to Vivi in excitement, ready to step forth on the new island.

"Wait, Vivi! Why would you want to go?" Katara asked in wonder.

"Well, sitting here on the ship would make me just feel depressed, so why not an adventure?" Vivi said with a smile. "And don't worry, Carue will protect me!"

Carue looked like he had a heart attack from where he stood.

'_Hmm_…_'_ Katara considered going with them for a moment. There was a lot of vegetation on this island it would seem, and looking at how _huge_ the plant life is around here, she could gather water from these gargantuan plants and either stored it or use it to fight when the time comes.

She probably _could_ go with them. She didn't want to sit here on the ship as well, wallowing in depression about her own problems.

'_That's Zuko's job.' _She thought with a tiny smile, but her smile soon fell into a sad frown. _'Zuko…he came such a long way to redeem himself…and we were becoming such good friends.' _Katara looks up at the sky with hopeful eyes. '_I hope he stays strong, for Aang's sake.' _

As she looked up at the sky, another huge lizard-bird flew into Katara's view. Her eyes widened at the sight.

'…_I hope I stay strong for _my _sake!' _She shook her head and said to them, "Um, you know what? I think I'll go too."

Nami looked hysterically bewildered. "WHAT! YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS!"

Katara blinked at Nami. "Hey…I can handle myself." she said, a little offended. "Besides, there's a lot of plant life here. I can easily take the water away from their roots, and use it against anything around here. This place gives me a more upper advantage on fighting."

Nami just looked at Katara stunned. She then put a hand on her face, sighed and said, "Okay…_fine_. Just bring our idiot captain and the princess back to us…"

Katara smiled. "Will do."

"ALRIGHT! This'll be great!" said an even happier Luffy.

Nami sighed in frustration and muttered, "Why can't everyone just stay here until the Log Pose sets?"

"Hey girls! I'll fix you both some sweetheart lunchboxes if you want!" said Sanji with a smile.

Katara and Vivi smiled at the offer, as Katara said, "Thanks Sanji! That would be great!"

"Could you give Carue a drink as well?" asked Vivi.

* * *

"WOOHOO! WE'RE OFF!" exclaimed an ecstatic Luffy as he, Vivi, and Katara set off into the wilderness, lunchboxes and all.

"Bye guys! Wish us luck!" Katara called out as she waved.

"See you when we see you!" called out Vivi as well on Carue.

As they left into the wilderness, Usopp stood next to Nami on the ship and said, "Wow. Ms. Wednesday and Katara sure are brave."

"Vivi has to be to infiltrate those gang of crooks." Nami then had a thoughtful look on her face. "As for Katara…" she shrugged. "Well, from what I heard, she sounds like she can pull her own weight."

Usopp nodded. "Yeah…that Katara sure is a mystery. I wonder what other stuff she can do with her bending? And also what kind of people she hangs out with?"

"Hmm…she never did tell us about her friends." Nami thought with a hand on her chin, and downcast eyes. She closed her eyes and let out a sigh, "We're not gonna interrogate her on that. She'll tell us when she wants to tell us."

Usopp nodded again. "Right."

Zoro, who once again got up from his nap, cricked his neck and said, "Well, if they're gonna kill some time, I will too. I'm going for a walk."

"HUH? A WALK?" exclaimed Usopp.

"Yeah, why not?" Zoro said as he exited out of the ship.

"Oi, Zoro! Wait a minute!" Sanji called out.

"Hm?"

"We're running out of food! See if you can hunt anything edible while you're out there and bring it back!"

Zoro shrugged and muttered, "Alright. I'll do it. It's not like you can do any better anyway."

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE, MARIMO!"

Zoro stopped to turn his neck towards Sanji. "Huh?"

Sanji looked down at him from the ship, cigarette in mouth with a slightly ticked off expression. "Those are fightin' words, my friend. You think you can bag a bigger beast than I can?"

"Tch, yeah?"

"Alright then, it's on! I challenge you to a hunt! It's a contest on who has the most kilos of meat!"

"Kilos? Why not tons?"

"Okay then, tons!"

"Sounds good to me."

And so Sanji exited out of the ship as well, as both warriors venture out into the wild of island.

And now they were two…

"…Why does this happen to me?" Nami said a she had comic tears running down her face.

"I know the feeling. Don't worry, I'll stick by you in this time of need!" said Usopp, who also had comic tears running down his face.

Nami and Usopp stood on the ship…all alone…

. . . . . . . .

"…I changed my mind." Usopp said.

"YOU COWARD!" Nami yelled.

* * *

Luffy, Vivi, and Katara explored through the wilderness and some of the animal life that inhabited the island. Luffy, whose eyes light up at every small creature he finds in the jungle, inspected every part of the area they walk through.

Katara giggled at Luffy's childish antics as he went from spot to spot to investigate. It's hard to believe he's older than her.

"He sure is energetic, isn't he?" Vivi said beside Katara as Carue walked next to her.

"Well, I've only met Luffy and the crew just a day ago, but I would think so." Katara said with smile to Vivi.

Vivi smiled back. She then looked at the trail in thought for a moment. After a moment, she spoke, "So…you came from another world?"

Katara turned her head to Vivi, blinking at her as they walked.

"Um…yeah." Katara didn't know how to answer that, but she did. It's kind of a strange topic to bring up, but it might as well make for good conversation.

Vivi nodded and contemplated on what to say next. "Um…if you don't mind me asking, but are there other people like you who," she thought of the word for a second. "um, bend?"

"Oh yes. Not just waterbenders, but they're other variety of benders. Earthbenders, airbenders, and firebenders."

"Really?" Vivi looked at her with interest. "Wow! …That sounds amazing! So you all basically bend elements?"

"Yeah!" Katara perked up with grin.

"Wow…" Vivi said again in amazement. "You have to tell me more about your world sometimes. It really does sound interesting!"

Katara smiled big on that. "Sure thing! When we get off this island, I'll tell you all about the things we have!"

Vivi nodded with a smile, until she then realized that along the walk, Katara had to walk through bushes and uproots. "Oh Katara, I'm so sorry!"

"Huh?" said a confused Katara. "What for?"

"Well, I haven't even offered you a ride on Carue!" Vivi said.

"Oh! Oh no, don't worry about it! It hasn't crossed my mind."

"No, I insist! We have room for one more, right Carue?"

"Quack!" quacked an agreeable Carue.

Katara stopped, as well as Vivi and Carue, to look at her, and then at the duck-ostrich(she thinks?).

"Well…I won't be much trouble for Carue, will I? Katara wondered.

"Of course not! Carue doesn't mind at all! Don't you, Carue?" Vivi asked her loyal steed.

"Quack!" he quacked, shaking his head 'no' for effect.

Katara giggled. "Well, okay." She then grabbed Vivi's hand and mounted on Carue.

"Hey! What's keeping you two so long?" Luffy called out to them in a distance.

"Coming!" Vivi said as she, along with Katara, rode Carue to catch up with Luffy.

Katara was in her own thoughts, as she held onto Vivi. It's hard to believe that she's chatting and riding with what used to be her enemy in this world. The one that tried to harm Laboon, and the one that she and Zoro fought, along with fighting the rest of the other agents of this Baroque Works. She was putting up an evil front, when in actuality she was just trying to infiltrate this criminal organization. That took a lot of guts, having to push away your morals and pushing away who you are, just so you can gain access on what this organization's plan is.

Katara's gotta hand it to Vivi; she's one tough princess.

"Katara?"

"Huh?" Katara snapped out of her thoughts. "Yes?"

Vivi chuckled as she turned her head to her, "I guess you didn't hear me. I was asking you about your bending. Could you really bend water out of plants?"

"Oh! Sorry. Um, yes, as a matter of fact, I can! And judging by how moist the plant life is around here, I can probably conjure up some water in no time!"

"Wow, that's incredible!" Vivi said in astonishment, but then looked solemn as she turned her head back to the makeshift trail. "…I'm very sorry."

Once again, Katara was confused. "Sorry? For what?"

"For putting you so much in harm's way. Now Baroque Works and their leader Crocodile are hunting you and your friends down. It's all my fault…"

Katara eyes widened a little in shock when she heard that. "Vivi…don't blame yourself." She tried to reassure. "I mean, I haven't been in the crew for long, but we would have probably struck trouble with these guys anyway, even without you being involved!" She guessed it was inevitable to face something crooked in this world right now.

But there's also the untold reason on _why _she's here, though…

Katara continued, "And besides, you already apologized!"

"Well…I didn't actually apologized. Igara-" she paused and hesitated.

Katara understood her falter. She said to her softly, "Vivi…he was a very brave man." Not the most profound thing to say, but it was true. But she soon added, "I know what it feels like to lose a loved one."

Vivi turned to her. "You do?"

"Yes…it was my mother." Katara said, with a sad frown.

"Oh…I'm sorry." replied a sympathetic Vivi.

"It's alright. I made peace with it." Katara said with a slight smile.

Vivi turned her head back to the trail, "I really do like to make peace with it as well, but…" she looked down at her hands that were grasping on the reins, "I just…I just feel like he's still out there…I know it's ridiculous to think that after witnessing that explosion, but…"

Katara could definitely see from her point of view that she was shaking. Concerned, she put a hand on her shoulder for comfort.

Vivi straighten up. "…No…I won't shed any tears. I will avenge Igaram's death, and put a stop to whatever Baroque Works is planning."

Katara smiled at Vivi's courageous statement. "You really _are_ brave."

Vivi turned her head to Katara and blinked. "Me?" Her eyes were to the side and downcast. "Well…I try to be…"

"Well, you are." Katara said quite frankly. "And don't you worry, we'll put a stop to Baroque Works, along with ending what this Crocodile's plans are."

Vivi turned her head to Katara and gave her a hesitant, but sweet smile, "You're really brave yourself."

"Hey, I've been on adventures as well." Katara then had a serious look on her face. "Look, Vivi, we _will_ stop this organization. Mark my words; we _will _help your kingdom from any kind of upcoming oppression."

Vivi had a stunned look on her face, but she smiled again, this time genuinely. "Thank you, Katara." she said in a sincere, soft spoken tone. "That really lifted up my spirits."

Katara squeezed her shoulder gently. "No problem." She smiled a smile of her own.

"…Q-q-q…q-q-q…_quuuaaaacccckkk_!" bawled Carue.

Vivi and Katara, startled, turned their attention to Carue, who was crying a river of tears down his duck bill.

"Carue?" Vivi questioned her animal companion. She then realized why he was crying and said, "Aww, Carue, you big softie! " Vivi giggled as she petted Carue's head.

Katara giggled as well. It was hard to believe...no…actually…

Katara looked up at the sky and thought about Zuko with a smile…

…It wasn't hard to believe. It would seem that she and Vivi would get along just fine…

"Hey, what's going on over there?" asked a confused Luffy.

* * *

"Wait a minute…" Nami said with a look of realization on her face.

"Huh?" questioned Usopp.

"I just remembered something. I've read about this before…"

"Read? About what?"

"About what that Ms. All-Sunday called this place. About Little Garden…" she got up and went into the study of the _Going Merry_.

* * *

"Hey! Over here! Look at this!" called out Luffy, holding the shell of a snail-like creature. "It's some kind of squid! An armored one!"

"Oh!" Vivi said as she and Katara rode to where Luffy was. "That looks like an ammonite!"

Katara looked puzzled. "An ammonite?"

"That means 'armored squid', right?" Luffy said with a big grin, looking like he figured it out.

"Actually…"

_**THOOOOOM!**_

The ground rumbled a bit. Everyone blinked. Katara caught something at the upper corner of her eye…and gasped with wide eyes.

"G-guys…"

Vivi glanced at Katara. "Huh? What is it, Katara?"

Luffy followed Katara's gaze. "WHOOOAAA!"

Carue's expression was that of horror.

When Vivi looked upward she gasped as well.

* * *

"No, not this one. Not this one…uugh! Where _is_ it? I know it's around here somewhere! I felt like I read it!" Nami said, searching book after book in the shelves.

* * *

"What's a Neptunian doing here!" questioned Luffy with bright, wide eyes.

What everyone(including Carue.) was seeing, was a giant prehistoric brontosaurus hovering over them.

Katara stared in awe at the behemoth animal, trying to find her voice, but nothing came out. All she could think however was…

'_HOLY CRAP!'_

"Dinosaur!" Vivi yelled in shock and fear.

"Dinosaur?!" Luffy yelled in question and in excitement.

"My word…this is a _prehistoric_ island!" Vivi said in amazement.

"Huh?" Luffy inquired.

Katara snapped out of her awe and turned to Vivi. "_Prehistoric_? As in…really _OLD_?" she said, stunned.

"Yes...this island…the age of dinosaurs never ended here!" Vivi said, still amazed. "Because it's so hard to travel here on the Grand Line, the islands here have been isolated. So each one has developed its own unique culture! While some cultures are advanced, others have stayed unchanged for thousands of years! The unstable climate on the Grand Line makes this possible! This island…is still in the dinosaur age! It's stuck in time!"

Katara was draining the information in, but she had one question that bothered her, "So…that thing is called a dinosaur?"

Vivi snapped out of her daze, and turned to Katara, saying, "W-well, that's what the species is called. This one, however, is called a-"

"LUFFY?" Katara yelled out in a panic.

"Wha?" She turned to said person…

…To see that he was climbing on the brontosaurus' long neck.

"LUFFY? WHAT ARE YOU DOING? GET OFF THAT THING!" yelled Vivi.

"Woohoo! This is cool!" said Luffy as he was climbing on the dinosaurs' neck.

* * *

"Usopp!" Nami called out frantically as she exited the study. "Usopp!"

"Huh?" Usopp turned his attention to Nami as he was leaning against the rail. "Did you found that book?"

"This is bad! I know what kind of island this is!" Nami said in panic. She was about to say more, when…

_**THOOM, THOOM, THOOOM!**_

Accompanied by the sound of…trees being pushed?

Nami and Usopp looked behind them to see…

…A _GIANT _man equipped with a shield and huge axe!

Nami and Usopp's mouths dropped open.

The giant man had a happy grin on his face, a yellow beard, and a big nose. He was wearing an outfit that looks like that of a Viking/prehistoric warrior, cape included, and has a two horned helmet. The giant was about as tall as the gargantuan trees that are scattered across the island.

The giant man was kneeling down at the ship, his face to their level, still having a big grin on his face, and said, "Excuse me, but do you have any ale?"

But all Nami and Usopp could hear was their screams of terror.

* * *

"Huh? …I thought I heard Nami calling me…" said Sanji as he looked around the jungle, all the while not aware that a T-Rex is lurking behind him.

* * *

"What the…? Is this edible?" Zoro said as he stared down a ready-to-charge triceratops.

* * *

"Wow! I wanna have my lunch up here!" said Luffy on top of the brontosaurus's head. "Ooh, volcanoes! And huge caves!"

"Luffy! Get down from there!" Katara said, anxiously.

"Luffy, be careful! It may be gentle, but it's still a dinosaur!" called out Vivi.

"Hey don't worry! It looks like this guy just likes to eat grass! I bet he doesn't even know I'm here!" Luffy called down to the girls.

Seeing that Luffy was okay for a bit, Katara turned her attention to Vivi. "Um, so what's that suppose to mean?" she asked her nervously.

"Huh?" Vivi turned to her confused.

"About this animal being gentle, yet they're still dinosaurs?"

"Oh! Well, dinosaurs are known to be vicious once in a while…actually, most of them are…" Vivi muttered that last line, but it was loud enough to let Katara hear, whose eyes widened fright. Vivi noticed her expression and caught herself quickly, "Oh, b-but brontosaurus' are quite gentle, if not agitated."

"Oh…okay. Um…are dinosaurs sometimes this big?"

"Well…unfortunately, a lot of them are, and not just dinosaurs, but other prehistoric animals as well."

"…Oh joy." Katara sighed exasperatedly. "Just to let you know, I'm just worried about Luffy up there. I can probably take some of these 'dinosaurs' or whatever animals out with my waterbending."

"Wow! You gotta see this! There are some really big caves over there!" Luffy called out, still on top of its head. But as he tried to get a glimpse of his surroundings, the brontosaurus flipped its head back, letting Luffy flip and twirl forward. And in a quick motion, the dinosaur opened its mouth and devoured Luffy, getting him in one gulp.

"LUFFY!" Katara screamed in terror.

"IT ATE HIM!" Vivi screamed in shock.

"QUUUAAAACCCKKK!" Carue quacked in horror.

But then…

_**SHWUK!**_

A _GIANT_ out of nowhere, _slashed _and _chopped _the brontosaurus' neck off!

Vivi looked up in horror, her mouth wide open in shock.

Carue's eyes were bugged out of their sockets.

Katara also looked up in horror, but instead of in shock, she was in awe.

'_Is…is that a…a human? A human GIANT?'_

As the brontosaurus's neck was twirling off into the ground, Luffy came popping out of the bottom of the dinosaur's throat. He then landed on the giant's left hand, which his wrist was wrapped to carry a shield.

"HOHOHOHO! Well, what do we have here? A lively human! I haven't had a guest in a good while!" said the giant, who was sporting warrior garb, pants, armor, cape, and metal helmet included. Also, he has a long flowing blue beard, and is carrying a large, old, longsword.

"WOW! You're huge! Are you a human?" asked Luffy, who acted like he didn't get eaten by a dinosaur.

"HOHOHOHO!" the giant let out a strange laugh and declared himself, "Why, I am Dorry! The mightiest warrior in Elbaph!"

"WHOOOAA!" exclaimed an astonished Luffy.

Meanwhile, as Dorry and Luffy were talking, Vivi and Katara were on ground level, while a foaming-from-the-mouth-in-fright Carue collapsed on his side.

"It's…it's…" Vivi stuttered.

"It's…it's a _GIANT_!" Katara said, the reality coming back to her. "Oh my spirits…that's…_A GIANT!_" she exclaimed, still in awe.

"I…I heard of them, but…I never actually saw one before." Vivi said who was also in awe of the sight.

"Wait…" Katara turned to Vivi, who was nursing Carue. "_Them_? Are you saying that there's _more_ than one of these _giants_?" Katara said, stunned.

"Y-yes." Vivi said with a gulp as she still focused her eyes on the giant and Luffy. "I heard about them from stories back at home. This is the first one I've ever seen!"

Before Vivi could say anything else, Dorry said, "Ah, hello there, little humans! Would you care to come over to my place and eat? You're all invited!" he said happily.

Vivi and Katara froze. "He-he's seen us…" Vivi said uneasily.

Katara worriedly gulped, and got into a stance, just in case the…giant…attacked.

Carue just gurgled a quack in terror.

"Oh? What's this?" Dorry said as he noticed Katara got into a stance. "Little girl, you're not thinking of fighting me, are you? We just met! HOHOHOHOHOHOOOO!"

Katara eased her stance, and looked at the giant with a peculiar eye.

"Hey, don't worry, Katara! He's a friendly giant!" Luffy called out on the giant's left palm.

Katara blinked and thought about the situation for a second. If this giant(named Dorry) _was _going to attack them, he would have done so already. Plus, he did save Luffy…

She decided to just go with it…for now. Besides, she's surrounded by plant life that's carrying tons of water at her disposal for her use if he tried anything… "Well…alright."

"HOHOHOHOOOO! Excellent! No offense, but I didn't want to fight two pretty little ladies such as yourselves! HOHOHOHOOOO!"

Vivi and Katara blinked, glanced at each other, and back at Dorry.

"I…guess we'll take that as a compliment…" Katara said awkwardly.

* * *

"HOHOHOHO!"

"HAHAHAHA!"

Apparently, Katara's suspicions were now thrown out the window, as she was seeing that Dorry and Luffy were sharing their meals(Luffy trading his pirate lunchbox, while Dorry traded his chunk of brontosaurus neck meat.) and laughing up a storm.

"Wow…they're getting along quite well." said a bewildered Katara.

Vivi, who was sitting next to Katara, nodded with an anxious chuckle. "Yeah…they act like they're good friends."

Carue was nervously slurping his drink that was wrapped around his neck.

"This is sure good, Mr. Giant!" complimented Luffy, who was sitting down on a piece of brontosaurus neck meat and chomping down on it.

"HOHOHO! This pirate lunch box is not so bad either! Not very filling though." said Dorry.

"Of course it's good! If you said it wasn't, I'd knock you out!" warned Luffy.

"HOHOHOHO! What a funny little feller!" said Dorry as he laughed, slapping his knee with his hand.

"E-excuse me…" Katara shyly said.

Dorry turned his attention to the waterbender. "Hm? Yes, little lady?"

"Uh…" Katara tried to think of something intelligible to say, but the only thing she came up with was, "Where…did you come from?"

The giant Dorry laughed vigorously. "HOHOHOHO! Well, I came from Elbaph, a village of warriors! It lies elsewhere on the Grand Line!"

"A village of giant warriors!? COOL!" exclaimed Luffy.

Katara and Vivi visibly gulped. If there was a village for giants, they would only imagine what the island's size would be like! "Um," Vivi started to say, "…are you alone on this island, Mr. Dorry?

"Nope! There is another warrior on this island that I'm trying to fight! As for the reason why we're here...well, I started some trouble. And now simply put, I'm on this island, along with the other warrior, in which I have to fight. You see, in my village, we live by a code. When there's a dispute and neither side will yield, the god of Elbaph decides on the matter. Our god protects the one who is right, and lets that one live." Dorry laughed loudly. "But we've been at it for a hundred years already, and nothing's been settled! HOHOHO!

Katara paled. "_What_!? A _HUNDRED_ YEARS!?"

"WHOA! You've been fighting for a hundred years!?" Luffy exclaimed.

Dorry grinned. "That's right! We giants have a lifespan three times that of a human!"

Katara looked at the giant in astonishment. _'Whoa…to think, someone would live that long…and be that gigantic…this world is full of surprises!'_ She shook her head. "W-wait! But what could the reason be that you and this other giant warrior have to fight on this island for so long?"

Vivi stood up and spoke out as well. "And wouldn't you lose your passion for battle!? What's the point of it anymore!? Do you still want to kill each other!?"

_**KA-THOOOOM! **_

The volcano that was just in view had gone off. Ash and smoke was shot into the air. While Vivi, Luffy and Katara were shocked and worried, or in Luffy's case excited, Dorry smiled. He got up so fast you would have thought he was standing the whole time. He picked up his wooden shield with the metal dome in the middle with his left hand, while he picked up his sword with his right hand. "It is time," Dorry said simply before he turned and went straight to the jungle, to what appeared to be another giant in the distance.

Vivi and Katara blinked, their mouths agape. From where they were standing/sitting, they could see a better view of what was going on. The giant was dressed in armor like Dorry, though the helmet was different, as it had horns and no metal ridge down his nose. He seemed to have a rounder face then Dorry, a short beard that's around his chin and cheeks and held an axe in his hand. When the two were close enough they swung their blades and met in combat.

Their blade sparked as they met with earth shattering force. They pulled back and Dorry struck first. His sword sliced through the air and met his opponent's shield. The other giant swung his axe at Dorry but he raised his shield in time to block it. Dorry pushed back with his shield and moved to take advantage.

The three crew members watched as Luffy loved every minute of it while Vivi and Katara were more shocked and nervous for their new friend. Luffy's grin never faltered for a second, "Oh man look at them go! They're having a great time!"

Vivi looked at Luffy in disbelief, "They're trying to kill each other! How are they having a great time!?"

Katara was looking at the giants to see what Luffy was talking about and found out that he was right. Their faces had grins just like Luffy. It was not a smile like that of Azula's or any other opponent she and her friends fought before. They were having the time of their lives. They were trying to kill each other but they acted like they've been doing this for years. Vivi glanced at the fight as well and wondered out loud, "Why? They're trying to kill each other and they are acting like it's the best thing in the world to them! What could be more important than their lives?"

Katara watched and could not help but see Zuko fighting as one of those giants. She remembered when he told them of the fire bending duels, that they had honor. That was why he chased her, Aang and her brother from the South Pole all the way to the North Pole. She then understood.

"Honor."

Vivi glanced at Katara in surprise as Luffy was still grinning. "Who knows what they might have done to deserve this punishment…but their honor is on the line. To be without honor is worst then death for them."

Vivi stared at Katara for a moment. She then looked at the giants as they fought some more. Both giants locked blades before they twisted them and sent them flying. The blades crashed down in the jungle sticking up. Both giants did not even go and try to get their weapons but continued to duel with their fist and shields. They were hitting each other hard as they both pulled their fist back while they pushed their shields forward. The shields hit each giant in the face, causing everything to stop. They stood perfectly still like that before they fell backwards and crash to the ground.

"DORRY!" Katara and Vivi yelled out.

Before Luffy, Katara, and Vivi could go over there to Dorry to see if he was alright, the two giants sat up and…started laughing?

"HOHOHOHO!" laughed Dorry vigorously. "73,466 times…" started Dorry, "We fought 73,466 times. Tie 73,466 times." He laughed some more. "Nice fight, Broggy!"

The other giant named Broggy laughed, "HAHAHAHA! Well, maybe next time we will have a winner!" he perked up. "Oh, by the way Dorry, I have some guests with me that brought some ale! Would you like some?"

Dorry laughed with him. "You have guests as well!? Well, that's great! And yes, please give me some ale! I have not drunk any for a while."

Meanwhile, Katara and Vivi looked on at the friendly exchange in bafflement.

'_W…weren't they fighting to the death a moment ago?' _Katara wondered in confusion.

* * *

Dorry arrived back with a few barrels of ale and told his guests what he had learned from Broggy, "Really?!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Indeed! Broggy has guests as well; a boy with a long nose and an orange haired girl."

"That sounds like Usopp and Nami." Katara said. "I thought they were going to stay on the ship."

Luffy giggled. "Sounds like they went on an adventure as well!"

Vivi then asked, "Umm, Mr. Dorry, you said that it takes one year to memorize the magnetic frequency. Is that true?"

The giant eyed her. "You see those human skulls there?" He pointed to an opening in the white mountain formation next to them. Inside were many skulls. "Most people who came here have died before the log post could memorize the frequency. Some were eaten by dinosaurs. Some died because of heat stroke and starvation. Some came here to kill us. But all in all, they all died. It seems that one year is too long for a small human."

"O-one year…?" Katara whispered in horror. That's crazy! Who knows what will become of her world by then? There has to be another way!

She stared at all the skulls in thought. So many people died here waiting for the log pose to set. She wonders how they felt when their friends and crew members died as they waited.

She shook her head. _'I got to stop thinking negative things.' _

Vivi sank to her knees in despair. "No…how are we going to survive for one year? Even if we did…I don't even know what will become of my country after that time…" She palmed her face with both hands, trying so hard not to tear up.

Katara turned to Vivi with a saddened look. She knelt down next to her and wrapped her into a hug. "It's going to be okay, Vivi…" She tried to reassure her. She knows something good will come out of this. She _knows _it. She's not the optimistic one for nothing. Although, she won't lie, she is worried. She promised that she was going to help Vivi, and they couldn't do anything if they stayed here.

Luffy groaned, "Aw, one year? That's too much. Don't you have a better way?"

Katara looked up at the giant, hoping that there was. But she was sure that some of the people that died on this island have asked them that as well. It was then that Dorry said, "Well, I have an eternal pose that leads to my hometown, Elbaph. We're fighting for that eternal pose as we speak. Whoever wins will have it! Do you want to try and take from me by force?"

Luffy shook his head. "No way, we don't what to go there. We just want to go to the next island, right?" he turned to Vivi.

Vivi nodded miserably, being comforted in Katara's hug. "If it can't get us to Alabasta, then it will mean nothing to us."

Dorry then started to laugh, "HOHOHOHO! Why don't you just risk it then? If you're lucky, you might arrive there in time!"

Luffy grinned and laughed, "That's true! Why don't we? We'll arrive there any way we can!"

The girls stared at the exchange while Dorry laughed harder, slapping his knee, "HOHOHOHO! You're a real funny feller!"

Katara and Vivi glanced at each other in disbelief. They didn't know what to think. Katara looked back at the two and then focused on Luffy. It seems she wasn't the only optimistic one around here…

Dorry ceased his laughing and prepared to drink the barrel of ale that he gotten earlier. "Well, if you're all staying here for a while, then I welcome you to this island! May we be of good friends!"

Katara smiled lightly on that note. That gave some kind of comfort…

Dorry opened his mouth wide to gulp it all down…

_**KA-BOOOOOM!**_

…and exploded right in his face! The explosion spewed and covered Dorry's face and most of his chest.

Thae gang looked on in horror. Vivi screamed, "DORRY!"

Luffy was also screaming, "THE ALE EXPOLDED!"

"DORRY!" cried Katara, obviously worried for their big friend.

Dorry landed on his back with a big thud.

Katara was baffled. _'What…what just happened?' _Instantly she thought that she could maybe she could heal him. But he was so big and even if she gathered enough water, she didn't know if his body was different like Luffy's when she tried to heal him earlier…

Dorry laid there, his mouth open with smoke coming out of it. He looked like a mess. Katara shook out of her thoughts and gathered a lot of water from her canteen to try and heal him; she felt like it was better than doing nothing.

Luffy jumped onto his chest and cried out. "Mr. Giant! Are you okay!? Why did the ale explode!? Did the ale came from our ship?"

"The ale exploded in his stomach!" cried Vivi. Katara climbed onto Dorry and bend the water to cover his chest and face. She tried to heal him, but she never tried to heal anyone with this much water, nor on something this big.

Vivi continued. "This is a very cruel trick! Did the other giant put explosives in the ale!?"

Luffy jumped down off of Dorry as the water Katara was handling started to glow, though not anywhere near as bright when she heals someone. Luffy then got into Vivi's face. "What are you talking about!? They've been fighting for one hundred years! No one who fights that long could do something so dirty!"

"Luffy's right." Katara said as she tried to heal Dorry. It was hard, with so much water to focus and their bodies being different then what she was use to, made her grow tired very fast. "They are about honor, not dirty tricks. The other giant couldn't have done this."

"Then who…are the _deceivers_?" Dorry asked, as he sat up, the water dripping off of him.

Katara smiled widely, seeing that he was okay. But her smile faltered after seeing his angry look… She hopped down off of Dorry and looked at him in horror as he stood up and gazed down at them. He hacked and coughed. "This is not Broggy's work. We are proud warriors of Elbaph." He looked down at Luffy, "Who could have done this besides _you_? I don't suspect anyone else."

Katara looked over to where Dorry was eyeing Luffy and gasped. She ran in front of Dorry and spread her arms out, "Dorry stop! I don't know who did that but it was not us! We are your friends Dorry! We would never do that to you! We were afraid that you were hurt, or worst killed!" She yelled, hoping he would listen to reason. "We know you have your honor and we would never do anything to keep it from you!"

Vivi, who looked nervous, went over to Luffy and Katara and tried to pull them along, "Guys we have to get out of here! He won't listen to anything now!"

Luffy, however, said, "I bet it'll be useless to try and escape." He took off his hat and gave it to Vivi. "Hold this for me. Katara, get out of my way."

Katara turned to him in shock, as so was Vivi. They stared at him as he started to do some normal stretches. Then it clicked what was going to happen next. "_WHAT_!?" screamed Vivi, "You plan on fighting him!? Are you insane!? Your sizes are too different!"

Katara got in front of Luffy again, "This is not the way! Fighting him like this will prove nothing."

Luffy ignored them both as he passed Katara and got ready, "Sorry mister, but I'm gonna have to shut you up!"

The two warriors stood staring at each other. Vivi then shouted, "Listen to me, Mr. Dorry! We know nothing about the exploding ale! We shouldn't fight! Let us try to help you!"

Dorry heard none of this, "You humans dare…" he lifted his sword high, "…try to trick the mighty Dorry!?" he shouted and he slammed the blade down. He coughed again and some blood leaked through his gritted teeth.

Luffy jumped over the blade and ran on it right at him. "Gum-Gum…" he cried out but Dorry punched him with his shield and knocked Luffy onto the ground. As Dorry lifted his blade, Luffy stretched his arms at a palm tree and pulled himself to safety. As the blade crash down, it missed Luffy. He stretched further away into jungle, preparing for his attack. "Gum-Gum…" he looked at Dorry and muttered, "Sorry," he was sent flying back and crashed right into Dorry's chest. "ROCKET!"

Dorry staggered back, holding his chest in pain.

"LUFFY, YOU IDIOT!" shouted Katara in anger and fear. "YOU'RE MAKING IT WORST!"

Luffy then notice that Dorry's boot was over him, "Huh?" was all he said before he was smashed into the ground under the giants boot.

"LUFFY!" screamed Katara and Vivi for their friend.

Dorry coughed again. "He ate a devil fruit…so that's what you are! I underestimated you." Dorry then fall to his knees and coughed up a lot of blood. Katara went wide eyed at that. Dorry was even more hurt then they first thought.

Dorry then fell over onto his side and onto his back. It seemed Luffy was in a hole shaped like his body. The rubber boy sat up panting. "Luffy!" cried Vivi as she ran to him. Katara was shocked, wide eyed that he was even alive after that.

"Are you okay!?" Vivi said as she closed in on him.

"How's the giant?" Luffy said levelly.

Katara's mouth was slightly opened in astonishment. Luffy was thinking about Dorry first instead of his well being.

"I-I think he's alright." Vivi replied, "If there is any bright side to all of this, at least we got him to rest."

Luffy nodded. He then called out to Katara, "Hey Katara! Can you use your magic healing abilities on the giant?"

"Magic healing abilities?" Vivi said in wonder as she turned to Katara.

Katara snapped out of her thoughts and replied, "Oh! Um, they go with part of the waterbending properties."

"Oh…" Vivi blinked.

Katara went over to where Dorry is, climbed up and gathered her water again to heal him. But as she did so she could not help but wonder who could have done this. The other giant didn't do this and neither did their friends. Did that mean someone else was on the island?

"Now I'm really mad! The giant was right! Somebody spiked that ale, and it sure isn't the other giant!" he glowered at the thought of who did it. "And my friends wouldn't have done this! Somebody else…is on this island!"

* * *

A dinosaur moved through the jungle, looking for any prey. It found a large, wax-looking cube the size of a one story house. The dinosaur was a little taller than the house, so it bit down on the cube. But it was too hard, and all of its teeth broke into pieces!

"You're in my way, lizard." a man said from behind it.

The dinosaur turned and saw none other than Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine. The dinosaur however saw them as food, roared and ran at them.

Ms. Valentine just smirked, "I got this." She jumped into the air, her umbrella open as she was a light as a feather, "**10,000 Kill-O-Press**!"

She shifted her weight to ten thousand kilograms and crushed the dino under her!

She got off and the two members entered a door to the wax house. Inside was all white with a table and a counter. A little girl wearing a sundress, a sun hat, and pigtails was sitting on a counter, snoozing. A lanky man with glasses was sitting at the table drinking tea from a cup with a ring of 3's around the rim. His black hair was very short at the top, although he had his hair form a large three that was standing up. As anyone could tell, this was Mr. 3. "Oh, back already?" he asked.

"Amazing that you've been able to make a base in such a savage environment." Mr. 5 said.

Mr. 3 smirked at him as he sniffed his tea. "Yes…my skills have many uses. And they greatly surpass yours."

The two agents frowned at that, but said nothing. It was true. There was a reason that he was Mr. 3. Mr. 3 saw the frowns and chuckled, "Now, now. Don't pout, you know it's true. Otherwise you would have already eliminated Princess Vivi."

"We would have back at Whisky Peak if it wasn't for that girl." Ms. Valentine said in defense.

Mr. 3 frowned, "Excuses."

"This girl is not normal." started Mr. 5. "From what we saw, she's able to control not just water, but any kind of liquid."

This got Mr. 3's attention as he turned his head away from his tea cup to the agents. "Elaborate. Describe her powers for me, with detail."

Ms. Valentine frowned, thinking as her eyes were downcast. "Her movements control liquid. We were hit by alcohol that she gathered from around the town. She was able to freeze us to stone walls in seconds. Mr. 5 had to blow up to break us free."

Mr. 3 closed his eyes, thinking. "From what you said, she has to gather water or liquid. That means she is not a logia type devil fruit, otherwise she would have created water without needed to gather from around her. But does that mean is it a different devil fruit or is it another special ability?"

"Well, they're here in the Little Garden, so we'll find out as we take her out." Mr. 5 simply said.

Mr. 3 shook his head. "No, we cannot eliminate her. Her powers are too important for us." Seeing Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentines confused looks, he went on, "She has the power over water, which means she can control the sea. Not to mention that water is everywhere. You cannot go to an island without finding even a little somewhere. Imagine what we can do with that power."

The two agents thought about it, and saw his point. "So we capture her?" Ms. Valentine asked.

"If we cannot make her join, then yes. But that is not the reason why we are here." Mr. 3 said before he pours another cup of tea. "Have some tea, this is a special occasion. Another big job to take care of."

"Another job?" asked Ms Valentine.

Mr. 3 pulled a really old piece of paper out, "I should really thank you. You gave me an excuse to come out here." He places the paper on the table. It was a very old wanted poster that was dirty and falling apart. On it was Dorry and Broggy. "Take a look at this. I was surprise myself."

Mr. 5 picked it up. "'Dorry The Blue' and 'Broggy The Red'?"

"So? Those two are just a myth. That wanted poster is a hundred years old." Ms. Valentine said.

"Oh, I assure you they are quite real. They were the leaders of a group of giant pirates called the Giant Pirate Warrior Band. They created turmoil in the world one hundred years ago, ravaging the seas, burned down towns, and terrorized the world. They have been fighting on this island for over a hundred years, and their bounties back then are 100 million berries each. That's 200 million berries all together."

"200 MILLION!?" Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine exclaimed, shocked at the amount.

Mr. 5 then regained his composure and cleared his throat. "Well, 200 million is quite a lot, but that doesn't get rid of the fact they're still giants." Mr. 5 said.

"That was why I had you placed that bomb in the ale. Without trickery and a strategy, we cannot win. But if you follow my orders, everything will be as right as rain…" Mr. 3 smirked. "…and until then, we will surely get promoted. And if you know how to adapt your strategy, you can defeat anything." He sipped his tea again. "A little _creativity _and even the biggest mountain can be made to crumble."

* * *

Katara was working intensely hard on healing Dorry. The large amount of water on his chest glowed slightly as she tried to heal it. _'This body is so different…it's hard to even do what I can.'_

_**KA-THOOOOOM!**_

Just then, the volcano went off.

The three stared on in horror. The next duel was about to happen. Katara felt movement under her feet as Dorry was about to sit up. Leaving the water on him, she got off of Dorry, who in turn slammed his hand down to help himself get up. "No Dorry, don't!" yelled Katara fearfully, "Let me heal you first, otherwise you'll die"

"I am…" he hacked and coughed up blood. "…the warrior Dorry! I cannot," HACK! "…disgrace the name of Elbaph! I have to…" COUGH! "…fight in honor of Elbaph!"

"What about the honor of your friend!? Will he have honor if he beats you like this!?" Luffy shouted to him.

But Dorry did not listen as he got up and gathered his shield and sword. Before Luffy could stop him, Dorry, with amazing strength, lifted the white mountain and slammed Luffy under it. Half of his upper body was sticking out and he shouted, "Hey! What are you doing!? Are you nuts!? Get this thing offa me!"

"I cannot stop." Dorry said pointing his sword at Luffy. "Even though it has been one hundred years and we are still fighting. When we begin it, we can't escape from it. Otherwise it means that we are escaping from being true warriors. If I lose this feeling, then I won't be myself anymore."

The three stared at him in awe. Katara felt tears forming into her eyes at this turn of events. _'This can't be happening! How can we stop this!?'_

But then she knew that nothing was going to stop him, nothing at all. He turned and said, "I am sorry, for suspecting you humans." He started to walk away, "This is judgment from the warrior god of Elbaph. Elbaph doesn't protect me anymore. That is all."

"IT'S NOT IMPORTANT IF YOUR GOD PROTECTS YOU OR NOT!" Luffy shouted at the top of his lungs. "IF YOUR GOD TOLD YOU TO DIE, WOULD YOU FOLLOW HIS ORDERS!?"

Dorry stopped as Luffy added, "Someone else is involved in this fight! AND THAT'S NOT FAIR!"

"Shut up." Dorry said. "You were born ten or twenty years ago. You don't know anything! Have you ever heard of the highest Honor of Elbaph?"

"I don't care about that! Take this thing off of me!" Luffy shouted as he punched the mountain that trapped him.

Dorry walked off again. Katara stared after him in dread, unable to move for a moment. She then snapped out of her trance. She made up her mind. She turned to Vivi, "Vivi, take care of Luffy! I'm going after Dorry!" And before Vivi could object, Katara went off running after the giant.

As she was going past through trees as she ran, she could see a clearing on where they were fighting. It seemed that the match has already begun. She also saw that this match was different, as Dorry wasn't moving as fast. Every hit and block by his shield was pushing him back. Try as he might, Dorry just seem to not get an edge. He was forced to use two hands on his sword to keep Broggy's axe away from him.

"What's wrong with you, Dorry? You're a little off today!" Broggy exclaimed.

Dorry forced Broggy back, letting his free hand cover his mouth so he would not cough up blood everywhere.

"What are you talking about!? I am as good as ever!" Dorry managed to say.

Katara looked on, heart-wrenched that this was even happening. She tried to look away, but she just couldn't. The massacre that was about to happen was inevitable.

Just then, Dorry slipped on something. What it was, she didn't see, but he fell to the ground nonetheless. As he fell, he looked up at Broggy who was over him.

"I got you now, Dorry!" he shouted as was about to swing his axe.

Time seemed to slow down. Katara put both hands to her mouth in horror. Vivi shield her eyes from the blow that was about to happen. Luffy looked on in anger, upset that he can't do anything to stop this.

In Dorry's mind, he thought, _'This fight has continued for one century. …It is now over.'_

_**SHWUUUK!**_

Blood flew high into the air, so high that Luffy and the others can see it. They instantly knew what it meant.

Dorry the giant has fallen.

Katara, still staring in wide eyed horror, stood there helpless. She did the only thing that she could do at a time like this.

Scream out for her friend.

"_NOOOOO_! _DORRRRYYYY_!"

* * *

**Well, that was chapter nine. Sorry it wasn't much, but that's my limit for now.**

**As for the announcement…now, everyone, what I'm about to say, PLEASE UNDERSTAND. **

**Now, this story…will be long. I plan on it that it will be. BUT…**

**. . . . .**

…**I'm thinking of stopping the story somewhere. **

**NOW LISTEN TO ME!**

**Everyone, don't worry, I'm going to work this story though the 'Baroque Works' saga, but…I'm sad to say that after the 'Baroque Works' saga…that will be my stopping point. **

**Please understand. I really can't keep going on with this story. I have a future to think of. I want to become a storyteller, a person working in animation. The least I can do is tell you honestly on why I have to stop this story. **

**Like I said, I want to work in animation, and if I ever do, I won't have time to work on this fanfic, since I KNOW this will be a very LOOONG project. **

**But that doesn't mean I've given up on it! As I'm still writing the story, I'll be looking for a good candidate to continue it. And when that time comes, he or she will write the rest of this story.**

**But I am sorry about this. I REALLY am. Again, I hope you all understand. And I just want you all to know that I really appreciate your reviews…well some reviews, since they're just people begging for me to update the story. Really you guys, can you READ the summary? It says I was putting it ON HOLD. I had to focus on my LIFE. Hello? **

**Well, anyways, I do appreciate all of your reviews. Thank you all so much! :D**

**You know, I guess maybe I just needed a break or something, so I can get my mojo back. But don't expect speedy updates from here on in. I have to attend to my other stories as well, just to let you all know. :P **

**But all in all, thanks for waiting patiently for the next chapter! Again, I know this isn't much, but hey it's better than all the waiting you had to endure, huh? X)**

**See ya soon! :D**

**-TSP**


	10. The Will to Fight

**Alright! Here it is! See, I told you it would be soon! ;D**

**Here's hoping you guys will like it! I hope I don't disappoint! :)**

**(By the way, sorry for the lame chapter title, I couldn't think of a good one at the moment. DX )**

* * *

"_NOOOOO_! _DORRYYYYYY_!"

Katara felt herself freeze, every limb stop cold, as though petrified, when the shower of blood rained down on the trees. True, she had only known this giant for not more then an afternoon, but the mark he left on her was obvious. Though wounded and bleeding, he still marched on into battle, for the sole sake of his pride and honor- very few people would do something like this, and for that, she admired him greatly.

Dorry collapsed with a large _**"THUMP!"**_, and Broggy, himself wounded and in pain, made no other movement. Katara felt herself shift, but she did not approach the fallen giant any closer. She moved without any real knowledge of where and how, she clung to the nearest trunks of trees and felt more that she was dragging her legs around rather then actual walking.

"_Why?" _She though to herself, wiping the tears from her eyes. _"Why did it have to end like this? Who- who could have done this?"_

She sniffed back her tears and looked away at the ground- she couldn't help him now. Broggy was still standing, unmoving, staring down at the body of his long-time friend, thinking things she did not know and could not tell. Katara took several paces back into the jungle, away from the clearing, and she thought back to just several minutes ago. Broggy had shared some ale with Dorry, and he drank straight from the barrel-"..._And then the explosion happened. Explosion, from a bomb in a barrel... Broggy wouldn't have planted it, and none of us had any bombs... unless..."_

Something was evading her, some sort of truth. It was as though she had the answer rolling around on the tip of her tongue, but through her shock and dread she could not pinpoint it. She did know something- but what? How did the bomb get into the ale? Who put it there, Who-

Just then she heard something, a shallow noise, a distant scream from far off, and when she looked up, Broggy was sobbing. Though the sound did not come from him, she saw how his smiling face was overflowing with tears; at first glance he may have looked happy to some unknowing observant, but she knew from her own twists and turns of life, that those were not tears of joy.

"_He still cries for his friend, even though he thinks he won..." _She thought solemnly, and her heart gave a sharp pang of remorse, her tears streaming down her face once more. Although this was a fight for honor, it was not like the sort of honor Zuko held. Whereas Zuko's fight stemmed from his shame, these giants fight stemmed from rivalry, a friendly rivalry they agreed to share together. Even if Broggy lost that same friend today, with his own hand laying the final blow, it all did not seem right for him. And if it was, there was no feeling of pride, no joy of winning in honorable glory. What came after that, was only a hollow ache echoing throughout his mind and body.

"Hahahahahahahaaa!" Laughed someone, and both Broggy and Katara whipped their heads around, startled, to see the form of some man half-hidden behind a far tree.

"Are you happy? You should be. You beat that guy so easily, too. Really, I should be thankful to you." He mused, turning around to face the giant, whose weeping face gave way to one of anger instead.

"Happy? Do you think these tears come from joy?! Do you know anything at all?! Who are you?" Broggy growled at the newcomer, and the man smirked. Katara hid herself deeper into the brush, listening and watching but not acting. She too shifted from hurt to anger, and attentiveness- whoever this man was, he was not of the pleasant sort, as simply his look gave Katara that feeling of uneasiness that kept her on her feet.

"My code-name is Mr. 3." Said Mr. 3 coolly, casually sipping from the teacup he held in his hand, unfazed by the building rage of the giant before him. "Simply put, I am an artist. My good partner Ms. Goldenweek is also an artist- though she specializes in portraiture." He waved at a pig-tailed girl with rosy cheeks coming up behind him, who was looking through her surroundings with utmost curiosity, rather then at the two giants in the clearing. "But that doesn't matter. What does matter, is that I have captured you where you stand."

Katara furrowed her brows. _"Captured? How was he able to-"_ But she broke off her train of thought when she saw Broggy attempt to move- only to find his legs encased in what looked like hot candle wax, restricting his movements completely. Her eyes widened at the display, and she gasped, covering her mouth. Mr. 3 seemed to have some sort of ability too- just like Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine before him. _"He's one of them," _She thought to herself, eyes focused as the wax seemed to quickly crawl up Broggy's legs, to his waist, and she saw him collapse onto the ground right beside Dorry, Mr. 3 laughing all the while. _"One of those fruit people."_

That was when it hit her. Of course! These people had put the bomb in the ale! Mr. 5 had the ability to explode, and since they were connected by employment...-

She had never felt a greater need to burst into the clearing and waterbend away the two adversaries then she did now, but her greater judgment told her otherwise and kept her back. What if she got caught in that wax-like substance? She would be pinned and helpless, her legs and arms trapped. She needed the help of her friends if she was to get through this fine and alive. Seething with rage at her enemies and at her own weakness, she took a quiet step back, away from the scene, making sure she did not snap or crunch any dead litter that would attract attention, and ran off to seek the help of her friends.

Or she would have, had she gotten far. But she did not get more then a few paces away from her hiding place when she felt the uncontrollable need to laugh befall her.

"Whaha- haha- whahahahaha-!" She chortled, unable to prevent herself from doubling over as a string of violent laughter racked her body. Behind her, from a dense leaf cover, stepped out Ms. Goldenweek, holding a yellow paint-dipped brush and staring blankly at Katara as she collapsed to her knees in false glee. "Wha-hahaha-did you- ahahahaha- do?" She snickered, her smile stretching the boundaries of her face but her eyes flaming with burning rage.

"Color Trap. Yellow is the color of joy." She stated simply, in between bites of a rice cracker. "You can't escape. You'll wait here until Mr. 3 comes."

Katara heaved, her breath uneven and her head light from all the laughter, trying to stand but finding it impossible as she clutched her aching waist. She couldn't control herself, couldn't force her way out of the hypnotic hysteria. She collapsed onto her back, fidgeting on the ground and kicking her legs into the air from all the snickering and chortling- when the urge suddenly left her, and she was able to breath again, her lungs relaxed but her sides in pain.

"_It stopped? How?" _With a sprint she was back on her feet and whipped around- a yellow paste was smeared on the grass where she had just lain. Reaching around to touch the back of her shirt, she felt something wet cover her fingertips; looking back at her hand it was covered in paint, and recalling Ms. Goldenweek's words, she understood how she got trapped.

In one of the worst moods she ever felt, she turned to the painter, who had set up a picnic cloth and was rummaging through her supply pack, her pallet beside her, and that blank expression never leaving her face. It did not even seem that she noticed Katara breaking free from her hold.

Growling lowly to herself, she took a single step forward- only to feel the most bizarre, intense need to sit down and enjoy a nice picnic. Particularly the sort Ms. Goldenweek prepared. Once more under the influence of that hypnotic strength, she quietly approached the painter and sat down on the cloth, her whole body shaking visibly. "I would like some delicious tea." She said as calmly as was possible through gritted teeth, and Ms. Goldenweek poured some for her into a styrofoam cup, putting aside a green-tipped paintbrush and making no other reaction.

Katara eyes were fierce and burning holes into Ms. Goldenweek's head, who didn't give the least bit of attention. _"C'mon, Katara! You have to get up and go to your friends! They might be in danger!" _She thought to herself, holding the hot cup in her shaking hand and staring into it,_"You have to think of some way out of this! Think, think!"._ As she struggled in her mind, she moved her hand reflexively, cooling down the tea to suitable temperature. At this the painter reacted; though she did not say anything, her eyes widened ever so slightly as she stared at the now warm tea. Katara noticed, and gave a small, sweet, deceitful smile. "Would you like to see another trick?" She cooed, and without waiting for an answer, she made a pulling motion with her fingers, forcing the paints on Ms. Goldenweek's pallet to flow into each other, blending together, spilling off onto the cloth.

The painter gasped, finally showing some semblance of emotion as she grabbed her pallet and desperately looked around for something to wipe it clean. This drop in guard was everything Katara needed; focusing every bit of her strength and willpower she dragged a shaking hand to the front of her shirt and wiped the green symbol painted onto it, distorting it completely. Smirking, she rose to her feet, and before Ms. Goldenweek could even react a wave of water hit her and pinned her to the ground, freezing solid on the spot and leaving her as the one captive and helpless.

"How's it feel, to get caught in your own trap?" Katara sneered, staring down the painter who glared back at her; as much as she enjoyed basking in this victory, there was trouble afoot, and that was ultimately more important than her triumph. As such, with one last smile, Katara turned heel and ran off behind a tangle of dried-up vines.

* * *

"_I have to go faster!" _She thought to herself as she jumped over overgrown roots and ducked beneath low hanging branches, side-stepping the slow dinosaurs who stood before her path. _"I've been away for too long, who knows what could have happened."_

It seemed that the answer was waiting just for her, as she heard a mighty _**BOOM! **_go off right in the clearing before her, where she had left her friends to themselves. Overcome by a feeling of dreadful curiosity and intense worry that propelled her forward like a rocket, Katara burst onto the scene, breathing hard from her sprint, taking in the sight before her.

Luffy, Usopp and Carue were lying unconscious on the ground, burn marks and soot all over their bodies, Luffy still pinned beneath the rock. The air around them smelled of ash and smoke, and Katara coughed some as she felt her panting lungs fill with the repulsive odor. Even though this sight was terrible in it's own right, it was not what took her aback the most. Standing tall in front of her three friends, with a squirming Vivi held in their grasp, were two people she had never expected to see again, ever- Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine, perfectly fine, unharmed, and no doubt the source of her comrades pain and wounds.

"Well, well! Look who decided to finally join us!" Chirped Ms. Valentine, leering at Katara with a vicious grin, who, with eyes low and shaded, shifted into a ready stance, prepared to fire off a water attack at any moment.

"Do you really think you can take the both of us on by yourself, girl?" Said Mr. 5, who had a bandage placed over the cut wound Katara inflicted on him back in Whiskey Peak. "Please. We already know your tricks, we can predict your-"

But Mr. 5 did not manage to complete his sentence, for in a moment's notice Katara had pulled a strand of water from the grass beneath her and smacked him across the face with it, sending him stumbling back. "Doesn't look like it, if I managed to hit you twice." She stated as Mr. 5 regaining his composure, his blood running down the opposite cheek.

"You'll pay for that, kid." He growled, digging into his nose and flinging an explosive mucus her way. Katara reacted by pulling more water from the plant life, forming a sizable shield as the explosion hit her liquid barrier. Twirling once in place, the water shield quickly reformed into a missile and flew at Mr. 5, who ducked out of the way, his grasp on Vivi faltering in the process.

Now free, Vivi attempted to escape to Katara's side, but Ms. Valentine grabbed her ponytail and forced her back. "Don't think you'll get away!" She sneered, and the growling Vivi drew her ring weapons forward. "Peacock Slasher!" She yelled, the roped jewels aimed straight at Ms. Valentine, who jumped into the air, her weight dropped to the lowest possible. "100 Kg press!" She yelled, and fell back to the ground, one foot on the princess's back. Groaning, Vivi attempted to get up, but the foot pressed into her with added force, making sure she was trapped. "Like I said, you won't get away! Hahaha!" Ms. Valentine laughed, and Vivi had no choice but to relax her tensed muscles and watch the other battle unfold.

Katara redirected her water missile, keeping track of Mr. 5 as he rounded her, pulling out more snot to aim with. Freeing one hand, Katara repeated the water wall, attempting to block the explosion, though this time he sent the booger at her feet. Katara was blown back just as the water hit Mr. 5, and they were both sent flying in different directions.

Katara landed in a grassy patch, while Mr. 5 ended up slamming into a tree. Pulling herself back onto her feet, Katara drew more water and covered her arms in them, forming liquid, tentacle-like extensions of her arms. She charged forward just as Mr. 5 got back on his feet, getting close enough to extend her water tentacles reach to Mr. 5's arm, completely encasing it in water. What she noticed, as she moved the second tentacle to grasp his waist, was the look on Mr. 5's face- as soon as he saw the water close around him, he seemed to become worried, and his movements became more sluggish then the swift attacks from earlier.

Vivi noted this too, from her place on the ground, and called out: "Close him in water, Katara! Devil fruit users are weak too-" But she did not manage to complete her statement, because Ms. Valentine pressed her head into the grass, muffling her voice.

"What?" Katara called back, using her bending to lift the agent into the air before slamming him down hard. "Vivi, what did you- oh!" Katara gasped, seeing how Ms. Valentine had Vivi trapped. Keeping one tendril held onto Mr. 5's waist, she sent the other one flying at high speed at Ms. Valentine, knocking her off the princess; Vivi immediately struggled to get back on her feet, but felt faint from being pinned down with such weight and force.

"Katara! Devil Fruit users are weak to water! If they're submerged in it, they lose their strength and they can't move!" She yelled, and Katara eyes widened. Unfortunately for her, she had found out too late: an explosion right next to her took her focus off of her enemies, and Mr. 5 broke free from Katara's water hold.

"That's true, girl. I have to thank you for taking that water off my arm, you gave the perfect opening." He said in a surprisingly cool tone, having his strength return to him. Katara spun back into a stance, redrawing water as Vivi retracted her weapons.

The opponents stared down each other, and Katara made the first move, forming a simple water whip as she aimed at Mr. 5's chest. He dodged, and increased his speed as he ran forward to Katara, who immediately pulled back the whip into a wave and hit him from the back. Mr. 5 skidded forward from the impact, and that gave Katara just the right amount of time needed to form the wave into a bubble of water around his torso, Mr. 5's stamina now draining fast. Katara smiled.

"What are you going to do now?" She mocked, using one arm to suspend the liquid around Mr. 5 as he feel to his knees from weakness, the other drawing more water.

However, she had forgotten about her other foe- until said foe came running out of the forest she had been thrown into, one arm grabbing Katara's waist and the other grabbing Vivi's. This shocked Katara out of her concentration, her water bubble popping, Mr. 5's body regaining feeling as his prison broke.

Ms. Valentine forced Katara onto the ground, her weight and her hold such that neither girl could break free. "What's a-matter, can't do anymore tricks?" She giggled, sneering at her captive; with a blazing side-look Katara quickly drew water from the grass and cut Ms. Valentine across the face with it, and although she yelped and pulled her head back, she did not break her hold.

Another explosion from Mr. 5 calmed both of the struggling girls, by this point, they were too hurt to renew their escape efforts with the same force. "Hey! Watch where you aim!" Ms. Valentine coughed, caught up in the boom herself. "Necessary sacrifice." Mr. 5 stated, and grabbed the princess's ponytail, forcing her to her feet. "Take the water girl, and make sure she can't move properly- we have to take her to Mr. 3." He ordered, and Ms. Valentine obeyed gleefully, though wincing at the sting of her bleeding cut, pinning Katara's hands behind her back and squeezing her wrists together, making the waterbender exclaim in pain and discomfort as they marched her into the jungle.

Katara took one last look behind her as they walked off. Her three friends were still unconscious, lying alone and prone to any creature that could decide to make a snack of them. Head down low, she marched forward, a single tear forming in her eye, and herself bitter and angry at the fact that she could do nothing to help them now.

As the agents and their hostages walked off, Luffy's hand twitched ever so slightly.

* * *

She was pushed back into the clearing where Mr. 3 had captured Broggy, whose hands and feet were encased in wax, keeping him held down. Right next to the path where the group came in from, Nami and Zoro sat, their hands and legs bound in what looked like a bar made out of wax. "They got you too?" Zoro asked with a twinge of amusement the moment he saw his crew-mates come in, they both made a face at him.

"Do you know that I am the real winner in this battle?" Katara heard Mr. 3 gloat, as she was pushed closer and closer to the other agents. Ms. Goldenweek, who had been freed from her icy prison and was rubbing her aching wrists, shot Katara a murderous glare once she saw her- Katara responded with her own. "You two giants still have an enormous sum on your heads. Did you know that?" Mr. 3 continued, and Broggy glowered.

"Here are the people you demanded. First, the traitor." Mr. 5 said, releasing Vivi and shoving her closer to Mr. 3. "You're a low man!" She yelled at him, getting a foothold and attempting to stand straight. "You put the bomb into the ale!"

Broggy looked shocked at the news. "Ale? You mean the one I gave him? That ale!?"

Mr. 3 ignored them both. Instead, his hands turned to wax and he yelled: "Candle Service Set!", Vivi gasped as both her legs were sealed in a wax bar, not unlike the ones Nami and Zoro were trapped in. "Mr. 5, bring me all of the captives and put them near the giant. As for this one-"

Here he turned to Katara, who was seething with rage in Ms. Valentine's grasp. "Hello, girl. I am Mr. 3, and, as I am sure you are aware, we are agents of an elite organization known as Baroque Works." Here he paused in case Katara had something she wanted to say; when it was clear she did not, he continued: "I am telling you this because you have a fantastic power. You have already become acquainted with my companion, Ms. Goldenweek, no? She says you were capable of extracting water from flora and converting it to ice in a moments notice. And that was quite some thick ice, it took me a decent while to get her out of that."

Katara snorted. Mr. 3 carried on, pacing before her.

"Your ability is unprecedented. Surely, is it not a Devil's Fruit, a sort of Paramecia that commands power over water?" He asked her, and she remained silent.

"It's not a fruit." Mr. 5 added in, dropping Vivi alongside Nami and Zoro a little off from her. "She covered her arms with water and was perfectly fine. Whatever she has, it's not something normal."

"Did I ask you?" Mr. 3 replied, annoyed. "This conversation is between me and this girl, you two pathetic excuses for agents have no word here. Look at your faces, cut and covered in blood, it's a disgrace to have you weaklings associated with Baroque Works."

He turned back to Katara, who continued glaring, never saying a single word. "What I want to ask you girl, is this: Would you be willing to join our organization? Despite what you may have heard, our leader is a good man; he intends on changing Alabasta for the betterment of all people living there. Do you know what Alabasta is like, girl? It is a desert island, but a very beautiful one at that. This beautiful island is currently in the middle of a civil war. Our leader intends to end this bloodshed and confusion, and bring about a better land for all the civilians: If you help us with this goal, girl, we will make sure you are greatly rewarded for your kind efforts."

"He's lying!" screamed Vivi, shifting on the ground, "Baroque Works is behind the war in the first place! They're all trying to-"

She was interrupted by a boom: Mr. 5 had set off his foot next to her, the heat and smoke quieting her down, but otherwise leaving her mostly out of harm's way.

"What do you say, girl? If you help us, we will give you anything you desire." Mr. 3 continued, as though nothing had happened.

Katara narrowed her eyes, first at the explosion, then on Mr. 3. Silence stretched on, no one so much as stirred.

Then Katara kicked her leg up into the air. At first it seemed that she had attempted to hit Mr. 3, he reflexively dodged her attack, but it quickly became apparent that a kick was not her intention the moment a splash of water appeared from the ground and hit the agent in the face, having him stumble backwards from surprise.

"That's my answer." She spat, her face stern, her gaze challenging. "I will never, ever betray my friends- especially for low-lives like you!"

Mr. 3 got back on his feet and stomped over to Katara, backhanding her fiercely. She made a stifled noise at the contact, and though the mark on her cheek was red and blazing, when she turned back to face him her eyes blazed fiercer. "Very well then, girl. I can assure you, you have made a grave mistake. Had you accepted, your life would have been spared. But as it stands now, you are a threat to Baroque Works, and you'll be going the same way as your friends- to hell! Candle Service Set!" He announced, as he flung a glob of wax at her feet, a glob that quickly morphed into the same shackle that held her friends. As soon as Ms. Valentine released her pinned arms, another flung glob sealed them, too, and Katara was dragged off to her friends' side.

"Vivi, Katara! I thought you two were with Luffy!" Nami said.

"W-well…" Vivi sadly faltered. Katara looked down in despair.

"If you mean that Straw Hat brat, then we got rid of him. As well as that long-nose kid and the princess' pet." Mr. 5 answered.

Katara snapped her attention back at Mr. 5 with a deadly glare, which Mr. 5 simply ignored.

"Oh really? Heh…I wouldn't be too sure on that." Zoro said to himself with a slight grin.

"Make them stand!" barked Mr. 3. Mr. 5 grabbed Zoro and Nami by the arms while Ms. Valentine did the same with Katara and Vivi.

"You know, we can stand on our own." Zoro mumbled, but he fell on deaf ears, and they were raised on their feet. Mr. 3 then removed the wax hand restraints, and added more wax around their ankles, submerging their feet.

Mr. 3 chuckled, "Yes…soon you shall all be a part of my latest masterpiece!" He used a great amount of his wax powers to create and form a giant structure; one that looks like a giant candelabra, with the top looking like the bottom half of a jack-o-lantern's face, completed with eleven candles on top, each situated at the circles' edges. The four of them were on the first level of the candelabra, their feet stuck in the wax. "BEHOLD! My Extra Special Candelabra!"

Katara, who stood next to Nami and Zoro, looked up in awe at the giant wax candle stick, the face seemingly looking down ominously at her and her friends.

"Huh. I guess this is what it feels like to be a candle on a birthday cake." Zoro

Nami looked up at the top of the candelabra, "Hey! It's spinning!"

Katara noticed it too. The candles were alit and the top of the candelabra was spinning.

"Ugh!" said Nami as she was trying to move her legs. "I can't move my legs!"

"Look! Something's raining down on us!" Vivi said as she stuck out her hand. Sure enough, there were little particles that were slowly raining down on them. The substance felt like…wax.

'_What's going on?' _thought an anxious Katara.

"HA-HA-HA-HA-HAA! Savor this moment, you fools!" Mr. 3 exclaimed with an evil grin. "My Extra Special Candelabra is raining down a waxy mist on your heads! Soon you will all be turned into wax figures! Not even my skill of the plastic arts can create such perfect human sculptures! You'll be wax figures…with_souls_! HA-HA! _**Die in the name of art!**_" He said venomously.

All four looked at him in wide eyed shock. "WHAT!? I DON'T WANT TO BECOME YOUR STUPID ART!" Nami yelled. She turned to Broggy and shouted, "BROGGY! DON'T JUST LIE THERE! GET TO FIGHTING! HE'LL TURN YOU INTO WAX TOO!"

"Oh please, there's no use in talking to that one! Ha! He learned the short truth a while ago!" Mr. 3 chuckled darkly. "Without even realizing that his friend Dorry was hurt, he slew the poor dope after a battle that lasted a hundred years! HA! He was so filled with pride that he was crying! Were you weeping for your friend, or at your own stupidity? HA-HA-HA! Well, it doesn't matter. What's done is done, you moronic oaf!

"…I knew something was wrong." Broggy said quietly.

"Hmm?" Mr. 3 queried with a raised eyebrow. "You knew? Ha! Don't lie now! You two have been fighting for a hundred years! You should be thanking me for ending your stupid feud."

Katara had enough. She glared at Mr. 3 and couldn't hold her fury in any longer. "How dare you?!" She yelled, "You had no right to interfere with their fight! These two were fighting for something you couldn't possibly understand! And you just stand there, thinking it's all a joke. You don't understand anything about honor!"

Mr. 3 turned to her with a glare on his face, but before he could say anything, Broggy spoke up, "She's right; you _don't_ understand. A person like you would_never_ understand why I cried. And I knew! From the moment we were trading blows, I knew he was hiding something. And even after all of the damage that's been done to him, he still fought with pride in his heart. How can I disgrace him, when he was willing to suffer in order to fight? HOW COULD I DISHONOR HIM!?" The giant fumed, raising his voice that was filled with rage, a rage that shook the very ground and his bonds. "YOU WANT ME TO DESTROY PRIDE OF THE WARRIOR WHO HAS PREPARED TO RISK HIS OWN LIFE?"

Mr. 3 was startled when Broggy's wax bonds started to crack. 'W-what!? B-but how? My wax candle jacket is as hard as iron! How strong are these giants?'

"But now I understand. Because of you, I had to kill my friend!" Broggy grunted as his bonds were giving away at his sheer strength. "And for that, I shall destroy you for it! Because it's the best thing and the most righteous thing I can do for my friend Dorry! I OWE HIM THAT MUCH!" Broggy roared as he shattered his shackles

Everyone stared in awe as the giant got to his knees, full of rage, ready to fight. Katara watched with a wide open, grin on her face. With Broggy free, he could release them from their bonds and take out these guys. But before Broggy could fully get up, he was struck by something and it exploded against his body.

Katara yelped in horror as the smoke cleared and Broggy stood in place, stunned by the blast. Vivi, Nami and Zoro were also shocked and in the girls cases, terrified, at what just happened. He was struck several more times, each time the blow exploding against the giant. "BROGGY!" Katara called out, horrified at what they're doing. She flinched each time he was hit and closed her eyes, unable to watch anymore. She slightly opened them to divert her attention away from the brutality to the grass.

Wait…the grass…

'_I have to do something!' _Katara thought hurriedly. She could bend the water out of the plants, but what good would that do? Even if she did try to launch a water-based attack at the agents, she would have nowhere to run. She would be an open target. She has to get out of her waxy prison and help Broggy! _'But there's got to be something to break this wax! This is the only time that I wish I was a firebender_…' Then an idea struck her. _'Wait…fire…heat…that's it!'_

After the last explosion that Mr. 5 sent to Broggy, the giant remained still before he fell back down with a thundering crash.

Katara hastily bend some water out of the grass without any of the agents looking, and splashed it around her trapped feet. Zoro and Nami turned their attention to her after they heard the splash.

When Nami was about to ask what she was doing, Katara put a finger to her lips to quiet her and Zoro. The latter just raised an eyebrow at her.

The Baroque Works agents stood a little ways off from the captives, Ms. Valentine laughing, finding it amusing at how stupidly the giant acted. Mr. 5 looked annoyed at how many shots he was forced to use to finish off the giant, while Mr. 3 stood, watching the giant fall back to the ground. He mused, "I underestimated this giant's strength. But I will bind him completely. Candle Wax Sword!" He cried as he made a giant sword out of wax that was larger than his body, and stabbed the blade right into Broggy's hand.

Hearing the sound, Katara looked over to what it was, just in time to see Mr. 3 stab Broggy. She widened her eyes in horror and stiffened before shouting, "STOP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

Mr. 3 ignored Katara's yelling as he stabbed the other hand and then both of Broggy's feet, laughing as he finished. "Let's see if you can do anything now! If you even think of trying to struggle your way out, your arms and legs will be torn off!"

Broggy was just regaining consciousness when the first blade was driven into his hand. He screamed in pain as he was stabbed in the rest of his limbs. Mr. 3 laughed while Katara gritted her teeth. _'That monster.' _She shook her head. _'Don't get distracted. This is your only chance to get out!'_

Zoro looked to see what Katara was doing and said, "What are you doing?"

"Breaking free." Katara said briefly.

"Breaking free, huh? Well, I guess I'll join you."

Katara glanced at Zoro in confusion. "But…you don't have anything to escape with."

"Yes I do." Zoro said as he unsheathed a sword. "I'll use my swords to cut off my own legs."

Katara stared at Zoro in disbelief after he said that. Did he really mean what he said? Nami shouted at him, at what he had just suggested. "Cut off your legs! Are you kidding? This is not the time for stupid jokes."

"I wasn't joking." Zoro replied.

Katara's eye went wide._ 'Oh my gosh, he's serious!'_

"Hey! What are you all yapping about over there?" Mr. 3 sneered as he and the agents turned their attention to their captives.

Katara spoke up to Zoro. "Stop it Zoro! What will you do if you manage to do that? You can't possibly fight that way, so why would you even try it?"

Zoro smirked as he held his sword up. "If you never try, then you'll never know. We're going to die anyway, so why not do it at our best?"

"No one else is going to die today, Zoro." Katara said, but there was a gleam in her eyes that did not go unnoticed. "I think I finally got it."

Her friends and the agents looked at her, confusion clearly visible on their faces. "Got what?" Nami asked.

"What are you doing!?" Mr. 3 questioned the waterbender harshly.

'_Come on…' _Katara thought to herself, ignoring Mr. 3.

Then…she can move her feet! Katara smirked. _'I got enough wax melted and scraped off to get free!'_ With a determined look on her face, and with a movement of her arms, she pushed herself out of the waxy prison with water around her feet and some melted wax.

Everyone stood in shock(except for Zoro, who smirked), while the agents eyes were bulging out of their sockets as Katara landed on her feet, away from the large wax structure. Mr. 3 pointed at her with a shaky hand, "How! How did you escape?"

Katara turned to face the agents, moving into her water bending stance and preparing herself for another attack. "I gathered enough water just after you guys trapped Broggy again. I was able to slowly bend it around my feet and tried something I never thought of doing…I heated the water up. It was hard work, but I warmed the water enough to melt the wax around my feet and get free."

Mr. 3 growled at this, "Damn you, you witch! I should've bound your hands in wax as well! "

Katara gave another smirk. "You should've. But you're not going to get another chance!" Katara spun and gathered water from the grass before condensing it into a large ball and threw it at the group. The water flew at them, shaping itself into an elongated rain drop.

Mr. 3 was able to dodge at the last second, but Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine were knocked backwards from the attack.

Katara gathered more water around her; "Don't worry guys; I'll get you out of there as soon as I beat these guys."

"Got it Katara," Zoro said, "I'll still keep trying to get out of this to help out."

Katara blinked and glanced back at her friends. Nami then shouted, "Zoro! You're bleeding!", and she was right, Zoro had two cuts above his ankles and was bleeding a good amount. The girls made the connection when a drop of blood dripped from his sword. "YOU IDIOT! YOU TRIED TO CUT YOUR LEGS OFF ANYWAY!?" They all shouted at him.

Zoro scoffed, "Didn't matter. I couldn't even cut through my legs from this angle."

"That's not the point!" Nami shouted while glaring at him. She wanted nothing more than to hit him for his stupidity.

Katara growled in annoyance, "Zoro! If I wasn't busy, I would give you a piece of my mind! But apparently I can't, so I'll do it later!"

She turned as the agents got back up. Mr. 5 gritted his teeth while picking his nose; he was really growing tired of this girl. "You'll pay for that." He got out one of his booger bombs and flicked it at her.

"Not this time!" Katara shouted as she slashed the water upward and cut the bomb in two. She knew they could be cut as she watched Zoro do it the last time they fought these guys. The two halves sped away from her, one into the jungle and one hitting a corner of the wax pillar holding the spinning candles. Nami and Vivi screamed as it shook. "Hey! Watch where you're sending those things, Katara!" Nami shouted.

"Sorry," the water bender said sheepishly. Katara then noticed a shadow growing larger underneath her. She looked up as Ms. Valentine came falling down at her, shouting "10,000 Kilograms press!"

Katara reacted fast and pushed a large stream of water at Valentine, freezing one of her sides. Now, Ms. Valentine's power lets her spread her weight evenly throughout her body. With her body falling at its maximum velocity, the sudden push and added weight caused the agent to tip over onto her side and crash into the earth, crushing the ice under her. Ms. Valentine moaned, feeling every bit of that crash.

Katara turned just in time to see Mr. 3 throwing a wave of wax at her. Katara held her arms up and more water was drawn out of the grass. She sent the small wave and it collided with the wax, the two elements splashing into the ground near the downed Valentine. Mr. 5 shot more bombs at her as Mr. 3 thought about the situation. '_She keeps using water everywhere we throw at her. She even can repeal my attacks. I need a way to catch her off guard to trap her once and for all.'_

Katara forced water out of a large tree behind Mr. 5 and sent it at him. Mr. 5 punched his hand out and caught the water flying right at him, causing an explosion that evaporated the water. "You won't catch me off guard this time."

Mr. 3, seeing an opening, sent another stream of wax at Katara. Katara made a swift movement with both arms and sent a stream of water straight into the oncoming wax. It was pushed away from her and right at Mr. 5. Mr. 5 was caught surprised at the changing attack and was knocked to the ground covered in wax.

Nami and Vivi smiled and cheered while Zolo smirked. "Way to go, Katara! Now beat that last guy and get us out of here!" Nami cried, pumping her fist.

But to everyone's surprise, Katara said in an almost bored tone, "No, I don't think I will."

The three were shocked. Nami screamed out, "What do you mean you don't think so? Help us now!"

"Sorry, but I really don't feel like it." Katara said again in the same monotone.

She simply stood there, not moving with a blank look on her face. Mr. 3 laughed, "Good work, Ms. Goldenweek."

The little girl from before now stood not far from Katara with a paint brush and a hand held tray with splashes of paint on it. "Color trap; black betrayal. Anyone standing in it will betray their friends and do the opposite of what they are told."

The trapped group looked at the ground beneath Katara's feet and saw a painted design under her. "This is bad," Zoro said. "She won't do anything to help us. If only we can knock her out of that circle..."

"But she won't listen to us." Nami said in a defeated tone.

"No, there is still a chance." Vivi said before she shouted, "Katara! If you want to help us then stay right there! You will help us the most if you stay in that same exact spot!"

Katara nodded, "I got you," before she took a few steps back and out of the color trap. Katara blinked, confused. "Wait, what happened?" she asked.

Vivi and Nami smiled when the plan worked. "Right, because she would do the opposite of what we asked of her." Zoro then shouted at Katara, "Katara! It was that paint symbol in front of you. It made you act different, watch out for it."

Katara looked down at the paint before she recognized it as one of the same symbols that made her act different from before. She splashed water on it and made it useless so it could not to trap her again. She looked up and glared at Ms. Goldenweek, who was dabbing some more paint on her brush. "Let's try another one. Color trap; laughing yellow." She flicked her brush and sent some paint swirling at the water bender.

Katara was not going to get hit by any of Ms. Goldenweek's tricks again, so she simply bent the paint away from her and right into Mr. 3's face. "Oh c'mon! She can affect paint too!" He shouted as he tried to wipe the paint off of his face and glasses.

Ms. Goldenweek knew she was in trouble so she quickly dabbed into a new color and flicked it at Katara. Katara ran at the little girl, flicking the paint over her shoulder and pushing water from the grass in front of Ms. Goldenweek, slamming her into the base of a tree behind her. Katara quickly froze the water, trapping her.

Katara panted from all the fighting she did but a satisfied grin was on her face. Now all she needed to do was free her friends and Broggy- but before she could even turn, the ground beneath her exploded and sent her into the air.

Her friends stiffened in shock at what happened. "Katara!"

Katara landed on her front, her body all sooty and slightly burnt from the blast. She tried to get up but someone came and sat on her back, forcing her down.

Ms. Valentine laughed from her seat on top of Katara. "Nice shot, Mr. 5."

It seemed Mr. 5 had freed himself from his waxy prison while Katara was busy with Ms. Goldenweek. He glared at the waterbender. "You are getting on my last nerves."

Ms. Valentine grinned and Katara gritted her teeth as the women started to get heavier. "I think you had your fun, but now it's time to finish the job."

Mr. 3 walked up, his face now mostly clean of the paint. "Yes. I underestimated your powers, but your little fight ends here."

Katara closed her eyes as she gritted her teeth while the woman on her back got even heavier, and she had no room to bend any water to free herself. Valentine laughed, "How much weight can you stand before you are crushed? We are at 100 kilograms, now 200 kilograms. I'm hoping to go all the way up to ten thousands..."

As soon as she said that, shouting was heard…

"**GRRAAAAAHHHHH!"**

Katara's eyes snapped open. _'…Wait…could it be?'_

And it was.

_**KRACK-BOOOOOOM!**_

Luffy, Ussop and Carue barged through the trees and jumped into the clearing, yelling at the top of their lungs.

"HEY, YOU JERKS! GET READY TO BE BEATEN TO A BLOODY PULP!" Luffy, Usopp hollered out as they flew past the agents and the trapped Katara with incredible speed.

_**CRAAAAAASHHH! **_

The three of them crashed into a set of trees. The agents looked on in bafflement, while Katara looked on with a hopeful expression. _'It's them! They're okay!'_Katara had a big smile on her face.

"What the…?" Mr. 3 said as he adjusted his glasses to get a good look at who intervened.

"Huh?" Ms. Valentine said with a confused expression.

"What? …No, it can't be." Mr. 5 said surprised.

Ms. Goldenweek struggled even more to get out and get away from her icy prison.

"Luffy!" Katara yelled out to him

Usopp!" exclaimed Nami.

"Carue!" Vivi shouted.

"Heh. What did I tell ya?" said Zoro with a smirk.

Luffy, Usopp, and Carue came out of the dust cloud, looking fierce and ready to fight.

"Usopp! Bird! Let's get 'em!" Luffy ordered.

"Right!" Usopp complied.

"QUACK!" Carue quack in agreement.

"Luffy! Batter these creeps beyond recognition and blow them out of the sky!" Nami exclaimed.

Luffy nodded. "Got it!"

"Don't worry everyone, Master Broggy! We'll save you guys!" Usopp shouted.

Broggy's eyes widened. "Usopp!"

"Luffy! Vivi, Nami, Zoro, and Broggy are going to turn into wax figures if you don't stop that candle stick from spinning!" Katara yelled under .

"Sure thing!" Luffy said as he thrust his fist into his hand. He then said to the agents, "You guys are gonna pay for this! You took my friends _and _you spoiled the giant's battle! It's time for me to kick all of your _ASSES_!"

* * *

**Oh no, a cliffhanger! XD Sorry, but that's all I can do for today/tonight! I want to thank Simple Tactic and shadowwriter329 for helping me on this chapter! I'm glad I'm able to get this story going again! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! :)**

**Also, Simple Tactic has something to say about the whole 'Katara-heating-up-the-water' thing. Here's what she has to say:**

**oOoOo**

**Simple Tactic's Footnote: Hey, everybody, Simple Tactic here. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. On another note, there is a lot of debate on whether or not waterbenders can manipulate the temperature of water, or if they just control the state of water molecules. We went with the former, hopefully no-one was put off by this. See you next chapter!**

**oOoOo**

**Alrighty! Again, I hope this was worth the wait! I love to hear your reviews! Thanks for sticking by with this story! I appreciate all the support! :D**

**Until next time! See ya later! :)**

**-TSP**


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